7      -  / 


GREAT  PEDAGOGICAL  ESSAYS 


PLATO  TO  SPENCER 


BY 

F.  V.  N.  PAINTER,  A.  M.,  D.D. 

PROFESSOR   OF   MODERN    LANGUAGES   IN   ROANOKE   COLLEGE,   AUTHOR  OF   A  HIS- 
TORY  OF   EDUCATION,   HISTORY    OF  ENGLISH    LITERATURE,    INTRODUC- 
TION   TO   AMERICAN   LITERATURE,    ETC. 


NEW  YORKvCINCINNATIvCHICAGO 

AMERICAN  BOOK  COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT,   1905,   BY 
F.  V.  N.   PAINTER. 


Entered    at    Stationers'    Hall,    London. 

Painter's  Fed.   Ess. 
w.  P.    4 


LB 
-7 

PS 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
SANTA  BARBARA  COLLEGJ-J  L1HBABY 


PREFACE. 


This  volume  is  intended  to  introduce  the  student  to  the 
principal  documents  of  educational  history.  With  growth 
in  scholarship  there  comes  a  desire  to  be  acquainted  with 
the  original  sources  of  information.  It  is  to  meet  this 
demand  among  students  of  educational  history  that  the 
present  work  has  been  compiled. 

The  idea  of  the  present  compilation,  which  had  long  been 
in  the  writer's  mind,  assumed  definite  shape  a  year  ago, 
while  he  was  making  some  investigations  in  the  library  of 
the  Bureau  of  Education.  With  the  original  documents  in 
his  hands,  it  became  apparent  that  a  collection  of  them, 
either  in  their  entirety  or  in  satisfactory  selections,  could 
be  brought  within  the  compass  of  a  single  convenient 
volume.  It  seems  strange  that  the  attempt  had  not  pre- 
viously been  made. 

In  preparing  this  volume,  existing  translations  have  been 
utilized  as  far  as  possible.  Bonn's  Classical  Library  has 
been  the  main  dependence  for  Greek  and  Latin  authors. 
The  principal  works  of  the  great  educational  reformers  of 
the  Continent  —  Comenius,  Pestalozzi,  Froebel,  and  others 
—  are  accessible  in  good  English  versions.  In  a  few  cases, 
among  which  may  be  mentioned  Rhabanus  Maurus,  Luther, 
Fenelon,  and  the  Ratio  Studiorum  of  the  Jesuits,  the  author 
found  it  necessary  to  make  the  translations  here  used. 

The  brief  biographical  sketches  will  be  found  to  throw 
more  or  less  light  upon  the  selections.  For  a  critical  esti- 
mate of  the  various  educators,  which  it  has  been  thought 
best  not  to  attempt  here,  the  student  is  referred  to  the 

3 


4  PREFACE 

author's  "  History  of  Education,"  or  to  any  other  of  the 
excellent  educational  histories  now  on  the  market.  It  is 
hoped  that  the  present  work  will  be  found  an  acceptable 
and  useful  volume  supplementary  to  them  all. 

The  successive  topics  discussed  in  each  selection  are 
given  in  the  index  under  the  author's  name.  This  arrange- 
ment shows  at  a  glance  the  scope  of  the  selections.  As 
will  be  seen,  there  is  scarcely  any  important  phase  of 
education  that  has  not  received  consideration. 

• 

F.  V.  N.  PAINTER. 


CONTENTS 

(For  analysis  of  each  author,  see  Index) 
Chapter  Page 

I.    PLATO,  Biographical  Sketch, 7 

Selection    from    the    "  Laws," 9 

II.    ARISTOTLE,   Biographical   Sketch, 33 

Selection  from  the  "  Politics," 34 

III.  XENOPHON,  Biographical  Sketch, 61 

Selection  from  the  "  Cyropsedia," 62 

Selection  from  the  "  Economics," 68 

IV.  CICERO,   Biographical    Sketch, 83 

Selection  from  "  De  Oratore," 85 

V.     SENECA,  Biographical  Sketch, 97 

1.  "  On  the  Education  of  Children," 98 

2.  "  Philosophy," 100 

VI.     QUINTILIAN,   Biographical   Sketch 103 

Selection  from  "  The  Institutes  of  Oratory,  "...  104 

VII.  PLUTARCH,   Biographical    Sketch, 125 

Selection  from  "  Morals," 126 

VIII.  JEROME,  Biographical  Sketch, 143 

"Letter  to  Laeta," 144 

IX.    APOSTOLICAL   CONSTITUTIONS,   Historical    Sketch,     .     .  150 
Selections  from  the  "  Apostolical  Constitutions,"     .  150 

X.    CHARLEMAGNE,  Biographical  Sketch, 155 

"  Capitulary  of  787," 156 

XL    RHABANUS  MAURUS,  Biographical  Sketch,     .     .     .     .158 

"  Education  of  the  Clergy," 159 

XII.    MARTIN  LUTHER,  Biographical  Sketch, 169 

"Letter   to   the   Mayors   and  Aldermen   of  all   the 
Cities     of     Germany     in     behalf     of     Christian 

Schools,"         171 

XIII.    THE  JESUITS,  Historical  Sketch, 187 

Selection  from  the  "Ratio  Studiorum,"     .     .     .     .  188 
5 


6  CONTENTS 

Chapter  Page 

XIV.     MONTAIGNE,  Biographical  Sketch, 203 

"  Of  the  Education  of  Children," 204 

XV.    ROGER  ASCHAM,  Biographical  Sketch,  .     .     .     .     .     .  228 

Selection  from  "  The  Scholemaster," 230 

XVI.    JOHN  MILTON,  Biographical  Sketch,     ..>...  240 

"  A    Tractate    on    Education," 242 

XVII.    JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS,  Biographical  Sketch,     .     .     .  255 
Selection  from   "  The  Great  Didactic,"     ....  258 

XVIII.    JOHN   LOCKE,   Biographical   Sketch, 278 

"  Some  Thoughts  Concerning  Education,"     .     .     .  280 

XIX.    FENELON,   Biographical   Sketch 291 

"  The  Education  of  Girls," 294 

XX.    CHARLES  ROLLIN,  Biographical  Sketch, 303 

"  General     Instructions     upon     the     Education     of 

Youth," 304 

XXI.    JEAN  JACQUES   ROUSSEAU,  Biographical   Sketch,     .     .  321 

Selections    from    "  fimile," 323 

XXII.     IMMANUEL  KANT,  Biographical  Sketch, 340 

"Pedagogy," .341 

XXIII.  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI,  Biographical  Sketch,       .     .  351 

1.  "Diary,    1774," 353 

2.  "The  Evening  Hour  of  a  Hermit,   1780,"     .     .  355 

3.  "  Swiss  News,  1782," 357 

4.  "Letter  on  His  Work  at  Stanz,   1799,"     .     .     .  359 

5.  "  The   Song  of  the   Swan,   1826," 364 

XXIV.  FREDERICK    FROEBEL,    Biographical    Sketch,     ....  369 

"The  Education  of  Man," 372 

XXV.    HORACE  MANN,  Biographical  Sketch, 383 

"  Physical,  Intellectual,  Moral,  and  Religious  Edu- 
cation,"      385 

XXVI.    HERBERT   SPENCER,   Biographical    Sketch,       ....  399 

"What  Knowledge  is  of  Most  Worth?"     .     .     .     .400 

INDEX 419 


GREAT  PEDAGOGICAL  ESSAYS. 

I.  PLATO. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Plato  is  the  earliest  of  the  Greek  philosophers  whose 
writings  have  been  transmitted  to  us.  Unlike  his  great 
pupil  Aristotle,  he  was  a  speculative  philosopher  who  sought 
behind  the  changing  phenomena  of  nature  the  absolute  and 
eternal.  His  thoughts  are  often  astonishingly  profound, 
and  he  has  exerted  a  far-reaching  influence  upon  the  Fathers 
of  the  Church  and  upon  the  mystics  of  mediaeval  and  mod- 
ern times.  "  Out  of  Plato,"  says  Emerson  in  his  "  Repre- 
sentative Men,"  "  come  all  things  that  are  still  written  and 
debated  among  men  of  thought.  Great  havoc  makes  he 
with  our  originalities." 

Unlike  his  distinguished  teacher  Socrates,  who  sprang 
from  the  artisan  class,  Plato  descended  from  a  noble  family ; 
"oh"  his  mother's  side"  he  was  related  to  Solon,  and  on  his 
father's  side  to  Codrus,  one  of  the  ancient  kings  of  Athens. 
Perhaps  it  was  the  influence  of  his  descent  and  early  training 
that  made  him  aristocratic  in  his  sympathies.  When  he 
came  to  theorize  about  an  ideal  "  Republic,"  he  placed  the 
government  in  the  hands  of  an  aristocratic  class. 

Plato  was  born  in  Athens  about  427  B.  C,  and  no  doubt 
received  the  best  education  in  gymnastics  and  music  that  his 
native  city  afforded.  His  imaginative  intellect  first  turned 

7 


8  PLATO 

him  to  poetry,  in  which  he  probably  might  have  achieved 
distinction;  but  at  the  age  of  twenty  he  came  under  the 
influence  of  Socrates,  and  henceforth  devoted  his  great  pow- 
ers to  philosophy.  He  spent  some  years  in  travel.  He  re- 
sided for  a  time  with  Euclid  at  Megara;  he  visited  Italy, 
'where  he  came  under  the  influence  of  the  Pythagorean  school 
of  philosophy.  In  386  B.  C.,  in  the  full  maturity  of  man- 
hood and  with  a  mind  richly  stored  with  learning,  he  be- 
gan to  teach  philosophy  in  the  Academy  at  Athens.  For 
nearly  half  a  century  he  lectured  to  a  circle  of  disciples 
drawn  not  ^nTy  fronT  his  native  city  but  also  from  distant 
parts  of  Greece. 

It  was  during  this  long  period  of  philosophizing  and 
teaching  that  his  series  of  famous  dialogues  was  produced. 
Among  them  may  be  mentioned  "  Protagoras,"  or  the  So- 
cratic  doctrine  of  virtue;  "  Timaeus,"  or  concerning  the 
origin  and  nature  of  the  world ;  "  Phaedo,"  or  concern- 
ing the  immortality  of  the  soul ;  the  "  Republic,"  or  con- 
cerning the  state  that  realizes  justice;  and  the  "Laws," 
which  deals  with  the  state,  but  is  less  speculative  than  the 
"  Republic."  In  three  of  these  writings  —  "  Protagoras," 
the  "  Republic  "  and  the  "  Laws  "  —  he  discusses  educa- 
tion; in  the  first  briefly,  and  in  the  last  two  elaborately. 
In  the  "  Republic "  his  views  are  purely  speculative  and 
Utopian ;  in  the  "  Laws,"  which  was  written  in  his  old 
age,  and  which  may  be  regarded  as  representing  his  most 
matured  views,  he  is  more  practical.  He  remains  in  closer 
sympathy  with  the  prevailing  system  at  Athens,  though 
here  and  there  he  gives  us  interesting  glimpses  of  education 
in  Egypt  and  Sparta.  The  following  selection  is  from 
Book  VII.  of  the  "Laws,"  the  translation  being  that  of 
Bonn's  Classical  Library.  It  treats  of  gymnastics  and  of 
music,  the  two  main  branches  of  Athenian  education. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS" 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  LAWS  "  OF  PLATO. 

PERSONS   OF   THE   DIALOGUE. 

AN  ATHENIAN  STRANGER.  CLEINIAS,  a  Cretan. 

MEGILLUS,  a  Lacedemonian. 

BOOK    VII. 

ATH.     Up  to  the  age  of  three  years,  whether  of  boy  or 

girl,  if  a  person  strictly  carries  out  our  previous  regulations 

and  makes  them  a  principal  aim,  he  will  do  much  for  the 

advantage  of  the  young  creatures.     But  at  three,  four,  five, 

and  six  years  the  childish  nature  will  require  sports ;  now 

is  the  time  to  get  rid  of  self-will  in  him,  punishing  him, 

not    so   as   to   disgrace   him.     As   we    were   saying   about 

slaves,  that  we  ought  neither  to  punish  them  in  hot  blood 

or  so  as  to  anger  them,  nor  yet  to  leave  them  unpunished 

lest  they  become  self-willed,  a  like  rule  is  to  be  observed 

in  the  case  of  the  free-born.     Children  at  that  age  have 

certain  natural  modes  of  amusement  which  they  find  out 

for   themselves    when    they    meet.     And    all    the    children 

who    are    between    the   ages    of   three   and    six    ought   to 

meet  at  the  temples  of  the  villages,  several  families  of  a 

village  uniting  on  one  spot,  and  the  nurses  seeing  that  the 

children    behave    properly    and    orderly, —  they    themselves 

and  their  whole  company  being  under  the  care  of  one  of 

the  twelve  women  aforesaid  annually  appointed  out  of  their 

number  by  the  guardians  of  the  law  to  inspect  and  order 

each  company.     Let  the  twelve  be  appointed  by  the  women 

who  have  authority  over  marriage,  one  out  of  each  tribe 

and  all  of  the  same  age;  and   when  appointed,  let  them 

hold  office  and  go  to  the  temples  every  day,  punishing  all 

offenders,  male  or  female,  who  are  slaves  or  strangers,  by 


io  PLATO 

the  help  of  some  of  the  public  servants;  but  if  any  citizen 
disputes  the  punishment,  let  her  bring  him  before  the  war- 
dens of  the  city;  or,  if  there  be  no  dispute,  let  her  punish 
him  herself.  After  the  age  of  six  years  the  time  has  ar- 
rived for  the  separation  of  the  sexes, —  let  boys  live  with 
boys,  and  girls  in  like  manner  with  girls.  Now  they  must 
begin  to  learn  —  the  boys  going  to  teachers  of  horseman- 
ship and  the  use  of  the  bow,  the  javelin,  and  sling;  and  if 
they  do  not  object,  let  women  also  go  to  learn  if  not  to 
practice;  above  all,  they  ought  to  know  the  use  of  arms; 
for  I  may  note,  that  the  practice  which  now  almost  uni- 
versally prevails  is  due  to  ignorance. 

CLE.     In  what  respect? 

ATH.  In  this  respect,  that  the  right  and  left  hand  are 
supposed  to  differ  by  nature  when  we  use  them ;  whereas 
no  difference  is  found  in  the  use  of  the  feet  and  the  lower 
limbs ;  but  in  the  use  of  the  hands  we  are  in  a  manner  lame, 
by  reason  of  the  folly  of  nurses  and  mothers ;  for  although 
our  several  limbs  are  by  nature  balanced,  we  create  a  dif- 
ference in  them  by  bad  habit.  In  some  cases  this  is  of  no 
consequence,  as,  for  example,  when  we  hold  the  lyre  in  the 
left  hand,  and  the  plectrum  in  the  right,  but  it  is  downright 
folly  to  make  the  same  distinction  in  other  cases.  The 
custom  of  the  Scythians  proves  our  error ;  for  they  not  only 
hold  the  bow  from  them  with  the  left  hand  and  draw  the 
arrow  to  them  with  their  right,  but  use  either  hand  for  both 
purposes.  And  there  are  many  similar  examples  in 
charioteering  and  other  things,  from  which  we  may  learn 
that  those  wh©  make  the  left  side  weaker  than  the  right  act 
contrary  to  nature.  In  the  case  of  the  plectrum,  which  is 
of  horn  only,  and  similar  instruments,  as  I  was  saying,  it 
is  of  no  consequence,  but  makes  a  great  difference,  and 
may  be  of  very  great  importance  to  the  warrior  who  has 
to  use  iron  weapons,  bows  and  javelins,  and  the  like;  above 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  it 

all,  when  in  heavy  armor,  he  has  to  fight  against  heavy 
armor.  And  there  is  a  very  great  difference  between  one 
who  has  learnt  and  one  who  has  not,  and  between  one  who 
has  been  trained  in  gymnastic  exercises  and  one  who  has 
not  been.  For  as  he  who  is  perfectly  skilled  in  the  Pan- 
cratium or  boxing  or  wrestling,  is  not  unable  to  fight  from 
his  left  side,  and  does  not  limp  and  draggle  in  confusion 
when  his  opponent  makes  him  change  his  position,  so  in 
heavy-armed  fighting,  and  in  all  other  things,  if  I  am  not 
mistaken,  the  like  holds  —  he  who  has  these  double  powers 
of  attack  and  defense  ought  not  in  any  case  to  leave  them 
either  unused  or  untrained;  and  if  a  person  had  the  nature 
of  Geryon  or  Briareus  he  ought  to  be  able  with  his  hundred 
hands  to  throw  a  hundred  darts.  Now,  the  rulers,  male 
and  female,  should  see  to  all  these  things ;  the  women  super- 
intending the  nursing  and  amusements  of  the  children,  and 
the  men  superintending  their  education,  that  all  of  them, 
boys  and  girls  alike,  may  be  sound  in  hand  and  foot,  and 
may  not,  if  they  can  help,  spoil  the  gifts  of  nature  by  bad 
habits. 

Education  has  two  branches, —  one  of  gymnastic,  which 
is  concerned  with  the  body,  and  the  other  of  music,  which 
is  designed  for  the  improvement  of  the  soul.  And  gym- 
nastics has  also  two  parts  —  dancing  and  wrestling ;  and 
one  sort  of  dancing  imitates  musical  recitation,  and  aims 
at  preserving  dignity  and  freedom;  the  other  aims  at  pro- 
ducing health,  agility,  and  beauty  of  the  limbs  and  parts 
of  the  body,  giving  the  proper  flexion  and  extension  to 
each  of  them,  diffusing  and  accompanying  the  harmonious 
motion  of  the  dance  everywhere.  As  regards  wrestling, 
the  tricks  which  Antaeus  and  Cercyon  devised  in  their  sys- 
tems out  of  a  vain  spirit  of  competition,  or  the  tricks  of 
boxing  which  Epeius  or  Amycus  invented,  are  useless  for 
war,  and  do  not  deserve  to  have  much  said  about  them ;  but 


12  PLATO 

the  art  of  wrestling  erect  and  keeping  free  the  neck  and 
hands  and  sides,  working  with  energy  and  constancy,  with 
a  composed  strength,  and  for  the  sake  of  health  —  these  are 
always  useful,  and  are  not  to  be  neglected,  but  to  be  en- 
joined alike  on  masters  and  scholars,  when  we  reach  that 
part  of  legislation ;  >and  we  will  desire  the  one  to  give 
their  instructions  freely,  and  the  others  to  receive  them 
thankfully.^  Nor,  again,  must  we  omit  suitable  imitations 
of  war  in  our  dances;  in  Crete  there  are  the  armed  sports 
of  the  Curetes,  and  in  Lacedaemon  of  the  Dioscori.  And 
our  virgin  lady,  delighting  in  the  sports  of  the  dance, 
thought  it  not  fit  to  dance  with  empty  hands;  she  must  be 
clothed  in  a  complete  suit  of  armor,  and  in  this  attire  go 
through  the  dance;  and  youths  and  maidens  should  in 
every  respect  imitate  her  example,  honoring  the  Goddess 
both  with  a  view  to  the  actual  necessities  of  war,  and  to 
festive  amusements;  it  will  be  right  also  for  the  boys  until 
such  time  as  they  go  out  to  war  to  make  processions  and 
supplications  to  the  Gods  in  goodly  array,  armed  and'  on 
horseback,  in  dances  and  marches,  fast  or  slow,  offering 
up  prayers  to  the  Gods  and  to  the  sons  of  Gods;  and  also 
engaging  in  contests  and  preludes  of  contests,  if  at  all, 
with  these  objects.  For  this  sort  of  exercises,  and  no 
others,  are  useful  both  in  peace  and  war,  and  are  beneficial 
both  to  states  and  to  private  houses.  But  other  labors  and 
sports  and  excessive  training  of  the  body  are  unworthy  of 
freemen,  O  Megillus  and  Cleinias. 

I  have  now  completely  described  the  kind  of  gymnastic 
which  I  said  at  first  ought  to  be  described;  if  you  know 
of  any  better,  will  you  communicate  your  thoughts? 

CLE.  It  is  not  easy,  Stranger,  to  put  these  principles  of 
gymnastic  aside  and  to  enunciate  better  ones. 

ATH.  Next  in  order  follow  the  gifts  of  the  Muses  and 
of  Apollo :  before,  we  fancied  that  we  had  said  all,  and  that 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  13 

gymnastics  alone  remained  to  be  discussed ;  but  now  we  see 
clearly  what  points  have  been  omitted,  and  should  be  first 
proclaimed;  of  these,  then,  let  us  proceed  to  speak. 

CLE.     By  all  means. 

ATH.  Hear  me  once  more,  although  you  have  heard  me 
say  the  same  before  —  that  caution  must  be  always  exer- 
cised, both  by  the  speaker  and  by  the  hearer,  about  any- 
thing that  is  singular  and  unusual.  For  my  tale  is  one 
which  many  a  man  would  be  afraid  to  tell,  and  yet  I  have 
a  confidence  which  makes  me  go  on. 

CLE.     What  have  you  to  say,  Stranger  ? 

ATH.  I  say  that  in  states  generally  no  one  has  observed 
that  the  plays  of  childhood  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with 
the  permanence  or  want  of  permanence  in  legislation.  For 
when  plays  are  ordered  with  a  view  to  children  having  the 
same  plays  and  amusing  themselves  after  the  same  man- 
ner, and  finding  delight  in  the  same  playthings,  the  more 
solemn  institutions  of  the  state  are  allowed  to  remain  undis- 
turbed. Whereas  if  sports  are  disturbed  and  innovations 
are  made  in  them,  and  they  constantly  change,  and  the 
young  never  speak  of  their  having  the  same  likings,  or  the 
same  established  notions  of  good  and  bad  taste,  either  in 
the  bearing  of  their  bodies  or  in  their  dress,  but  he  who 
devises  something  new  and  out  of  the  way  in  figures  and 
colors  and  the  like  is  held  in  special  honor,  we  may  truly 
say  that  no  greater  evil  can  happen  in  a  state;  for  he  who 
changes  the  sports  is  secretly  changing  the  manners  of  the 
young,  and  making  the  old  to  be  dishonored  among  them 
and  the  new  to  be  honored.  And  I  affirm  that  there  is 
nothing  which  is  a  greater  injury  to  all  states  than  saying 
or  thinking  thus.  Will  you  hear  me  tell  how  great  I  deem 
it  to  be? 

CLE.     You  mean  the  evil  of  blaming  antiquity  in  states? 

ATH.    Exactly. 


14  PLATO 

CLE.  If  you  are  speaking  of  that,  you  will  find  in  us 
hearers  who  are  disposed  to  receive  what  you  say  not  un- 
favorably but  most  favorably. 

ATH.     I  should  expect  so. 

CLE.     Proceed. 

ATH.  Well,  then,  let  us  give  all  the  greater  heed  to  one 
another's  words.  The  argument  says  that  to  change  from 
anything  except  the  bad  is  the  most  dangerous  of  all  things ; 
this  is  true  in  the  case  of  the  seasons  and  of  the  winds,  in 
the  management  of  our  bodies  and  the  habits  of  our  minds 
—  true  of  all  things  except,  as  I  said  before,  of  the  bad. 
He  who  looks  at  the  constitution  of  individuals  accustomed 
to  eat  any  sort  of  meat  or  drink  any  drink  or  do  any  work 
which  they  could  get,  may  see  that  they  are  at  first  dis- 
ordered but  afterwards,  as  time  goes  on,  their  bodies  grow 
adapted  to  them,  and  they  learn  to  know  and  like  variety, 
and  have  good  health  and  enjoyment  of  life;  and  if  ever 
afterwards  they  are  confined  again  to  a  superior  diet,  at 
first  they  are  troubled  with  disorders,  and  with  difficulty 
become  habituated  to  their  new  food.  A  similar  principle 
we  may  imagine  to  hold  good  about  the  minds  of  men  and 
the  nature  of  their  souls.  For  when  they  have  been  brought 
up  in  certain  laws,  which  by  some  Divine  Providence  have 
remained  unchanged  during  long  ages,  so  that  no  one  has 
any  memory  or  tradition  of  their  ever  having  been  other- 
wise than  they  are,  then  every  one  is  afraid  and  ashamed 
to  change  that  which  is  established.  The  legislator  must 
somehow  find  a  way  of  implanting  this  reverence  for  an- 
tiquity, and  I  would  propose  the  following  way:  —  People 
are  apt  to  fancy,  as  I  was  saying  before,  that  when  the 
plays  of  children  are  altered  they  are  merely  plays,  not 
seeing  that  the  most  serious  and  detrimental  consequences 
arise  out  of  the  change;  and  they  readily  comply  with  the 
child's  wishes  instead  of  deterring  him,  not  considering 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  15 

that  these  children  who  make  innovations  in  their  games, 
when  they  grow  up  to  be  men  will  be  different  from  the 
last  generation  of  children,  and,  being  different,  will  desire 
a  different  sort  of  life,  and  under  the  influence  of  this 
desire  will  want  other  institutions  and  laws;  and  no  one 
ever  apprehends  that  there  will  follow  what  I  just  now 
called  the  greatest  of  evils  to  states.  Changes  in  bodily 
fashions  are  no  such  serious  evils,  but  frequent  changes  in 
the  praise  and  censure  of  manners  are  the  greatest  of  evils, 
and  require  the  utmost  prevision. 

CLE.     To  be  sure. 

ATH.  And  now  do  we  still  hold  to  our  former  assertion, 
that  rhythms  and  music  in  general  are  imitations  of  good 
and  evil  characters  in  men?  What  say  you? 

CLE.     That  is  the  only  doctrine  which  I  can  admit. 

ATH.  Must  we  not,  then,  try  in  every  possible  way  to 
prevent  our  youth  desiring  imitations  and  novelties  either 
in  dance  or  song?  Nor  must  any  one  be  allowed  to  offer 
them  varieties  of  pleasures. 

CLE.     Most  true. 

ATH.  Can  any  better  mode  of  effecting  this  object  be 
imagined  by  any  of  us  than  that  of  the  Egyptians? 

CLE.     What  is  their  method? 

ATH.  They  consecrate  every  sort  of  dance  or  melody, 
first  ordaining  festivals, —  calculating  for  the  year  what 
they  ought  to  be,  and  at  what  time,  and  in  honor  of  what 
Gods,  sons  of  Gods,  and  heroes  they  ought  to  be  cele- 
brated; and,  in  the  next  place,  what  hymns  ought  to  be 
sung  at  the  several  sacrifices,  and  with  what  dances  the 
particular  festival  is  to  be  honored.  This  is  to  be  arranged 
at  first  by  certain  persons,  and,  when  arranged,  the  whole 
assembly  of  the  citizens  are  to  offer  sacrifices  and  libations 
to  the  Fates  and  all  the  other  Gods,  and  to  consecrate  the 
several  odes  to  Gods  and  heroes;  and  if  any  one  offers 


16  PLATO 

any  other  hymns  or  dances  to  any  one  of  the  Gods,  the 
priests  and  priestesses,  with  the  consent  of  the  guardians 
of  the  law,  shall  religiously  and  lawfully  exclude  him,  and 
he  who  is  excluded,  if  he  do  not  submit,  shall  be  liable  all 
his  life  long  to  have  a  suit  of  impiety  brought  against  him 
by  any  one  who  likes. 

CLE.     Very  good. 

ATH.  In  the  consideration  of  this  subject,  let  us  remem- 
ber what  is  due  to  ourselves. 

CLE.     To  what  are  you  referring? 

ATH.  I  mean  that  any  young  man,  and  much  more  any 
old  one,  when  he  sees  or  hears  anything  strange  or  unac- 
customed, does  not  at  once  run  to  embrace  the  paradox, 
but  he  stands  considering,  like  a  person  who  is  at  a  place 
where  three  ways  meet,  and  does  not  very  well  know  his 
way  —  he  may  be  alone  or  he  may  be  walking  with  others, 
and  he  will  say  to  himself  and  them,  "  Which  is  the  way?  " 
and  will  not  move  forward  until  he  is  satisfied  that  he  is 
going  right.  And  this  is  our  case,  for  a  strange  discussion 
on  the  subject  of  law  has  arisen,  which  requires  the  utmost 
cpnsideration,  and  we  should  not  at  our  age  be  too  ready 
to  speak  about  such  great  matters,  or  be  confident  that  we 
can  say  anything  certain  all  in  a  moment. 

CLE.     Most  true. 

ATH.  Then  we  will  allow  time  for  reflection,  and  decide 
when  we  have  given  the  subject  sufficient  consideration. 
But  that  we  may  not  be  hindered  from  completing  the 
natural  arrangement  of  our  laws,  let  us  proceed  to  the  con- 
clusion of  them  in  due  order;  for  very  possibly,  if  God 
will,  the  exposition  of  them,  when  completed,  may  throw 
light  on  our  present  perplexity. 

CLE.     Excellent,  Stranger;  let  us  do  as  you  propose. 

ATH.  Let  us  then  affirm  the  paradox  that  strains  of 
music  are  our  laws,  and  this  latter  being  the  name  which 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  i? 

the  ancients  gave  to  lyric  songs,  they  probably  would  not 
have  very  much  objected  to  our  proposed  application  of 
the  word.  Some  one,  either  asleep  or  awake,  must  have 
had  a  dreamy  suspicion  of  their  nature.  And  let  our  de- 
cree be  as  follows : —  No  one  in  singing  or  dancing  shall 
offend  against  public  and  consecrated  models,  and  the 
general  fashion  among  the  youth,  any  more  than  he  would 
offend  against  any  other  law.  And  he  who  observes  this 
law  shall  be  blameless;  but  he  who  is  disobedient,  as  I 
was  saying,  shall  be  punished  by  the  guardians  of  the  laws, 
and  by  priests  and  priestesses:  suppose  that  we  imagine 
this  to  be  our  law. 

CLE.     Very  good. 

ATH.  Can  any  one  who  makes  such  laws  escape  ridi- 
cule? Let  us  see.  I  think  that  our  only  safety  will  be  in 
first  framing  certain  models  for  them.  One  of  these  models 
shall  be  as  follows : —  If  when  a  sacrifice  is  going  on, 
and  the  victims  are  being  burnt  according  to  law, —  if,  I 
say,  any  one  who  may  be  a  son  or  brother,  standing  by 
another  at  the  altar  and  over  the  victims,  horribly  blas- 
phemes, will  he  not  inspire  despondency  and  evil  omens 
and  forebodings  in  the  mind  of  his  father  and  of  his  other 
kinsmen  ? 

CLE.     Of  course. 

ATH.  And  this  is  just  what  takes  place  in  almost  all  our 
cities.  A  magistrate  offers  a  public  sacrifice,  and  there 
come  in  not  one  but  many  choruses,  who  stand  by  them- 
selves a  little  way  from  the  altar,  and  from  time  to  time 
pour  forth  all  sorts  of  horrible  blasphemies  on  the  sacred 
rites,  exciting  the  souls  of  the  audience  with  words  and 
rhythms,  and  melodies  most  sorrowful  to  hear;  and  he 
who  can  at  the  instant  the  city  is  sacrificing  make  the 
citizens  weep  most,  carries  away  the  palm  of  victory.  Now, 
ought  we  not  to  forbid  such  strains  as  these?  And  if 

PAINTER    FED.    Ess. —  2 


i8  PLATO 

ever  our  citizens  must  hear  such  lamentations,  then  on 
some  unblest  and  inauspicious  day  let  there  be  choruses  of 
foreign  and  hired  minstrels,  like  those  who  accompany 
the  departed  at  funerals  with  barbarious  Carian  chants. 
That  is  the  sort  of  thing  which  will  be  appropriate  if  we 
have  such  strains  at  all;  and  let  the  apparel  of  the  singers 
be  not  circlets  and  ornaments  of  gold,  but  the  reverse. 
Enough  of  the  description.  And  now  I  will  ask  once 
more  whether  we  shall  lay  down  as  one  of  our  principles 
of  song  — 

CLE.     What? 

ATH.  That  we  should  avoid  every  evil  word.  I  need 
hardly  ask  again,  but  shall  assume  that  you  agree  with  me. 

CLE.  By  all  means ;  that  law  is  approved  by  the  suffrage 
of  all  of  us. 

ATH.  But  what  shall  be  our  next  musical  law  or  type? 
Ought  not  prayers  to  be  offered  up  to  the  Gods  when  we 
sacrifice  ? 

CLE.     Certainly. 

ATH.  And  our  third  law,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  will  be 
to  the  effect,  that  our  poets  understanding  prayers  to  be 
requests  which  we  make  to  the  Gods,  will  take  especial 
heed  that  they  do  not  by  mistake  ask  for  evil  instead  of 
good.  To  make  such  a  prayer  would  surely  be  too  ridicu- 
lous. 

CLE.     Very  true. 

ATH.  Were  we  not  a  little  while  ago  quite  determined 
that  no  silver  or  golden  Plutus  should  dwell  in  our  state  ? 

CLE.     To  be  sure. 

ATH.  And  what  did  this  illustration  mean?  Did  we  not 
imply  that  the  poets  are  not  always  quite  capable  of  know- 
ing what  is  good  or  evil?  And  if  one  of  them  utters  a 
mistaken  prayer  in  song  or  words,  he  will  make  our  citi- 
zens pray  for  the  opposite  of  what  is  good  in  matters  of 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  19 

the  highest  import;  than  which,  as  I  was  saying,  there 
can  be  few  greater  mistakes.  Shall  we  then  propose  as 
one  of  our  laws  and  models  relating  to  the  Muses  — 

CLE.     What? — will  you  explain Jjie  law  more  precisely? 

ATH.  Shall  we  make  a  law  that  the  poet  shall  compose 
nothing  contrary  to  the  ideas  of  the  lawful,  or  just,  or 
beautiful,  or  good,  which  are  allowed  in  the  state?  Nor 
shall  he  be  permitted  to  communicate  his  compositions  to 
any  private  individuals,  until  he  shall  have  shown  them 
to  the  appointed  judges,  and  the  guardians  of  the  law,  and 
they  are  satisfied  with  them.  As  to  the  persons  whom  we 
appoint  to  be  our  legislators  about  music  and  directors 
of  education,  they  have  been  already  indicated.  Once  more 
then,  as  I  have  asked  more  than  once,  shall  this  be  our 
third  law,  and  type,  and  model  —  What  do  you  say  ? 

CLE.     Yes,  by  all  means. 

ATH.  Next  it  will  be  proper  to  have  hymns  and  praises 
of  the  Gods,  intermingled  with  prayers ;  and  after  the  Gods 
prayers  and  praises  should  be  offered  in  like  manner  to 
demigods  and  heroes,  suitable  to  their  several  characters. 

CLE.     Certainly. 

ATH.  In  the  third  place  there  will  be  no  objection  to  a 
law,  that  citizens  who  are  departed  and  have  done  good 
and  energetic  deeds,  either  with  their  souls  or  with  their 
bodies,  and  have  been  obedient  to  the  laws,  should  receive 
eulogies;  this  will  be  very  fitting. 

CLE.    Quite  true. 

ATH.  But  to  honor  with  hymns  and  panegyrics  those 
who  are  still  alive  is  not  safe ;  a  man  should  run  his  course, 
and  make  a  fair  ending,  and  then  we  will  praise  him;  and 
let  praise  be  given  equally  to  women  as  well  as  men  who 
have  been  distinguished  in  virtue.  The  order  of  songs  and 
dances  shall  be  as  follows: — There  are  many  ancient 
musical  compositions  and  dances  which  are  excellent,  and 


20  .  PLATO 

from  these  the  government  may  freely  select  what  is  proper 
and  suitable;  and  they  shall  choose  judges  of  not  less 
than  fifty  years  of  age,  who  shall  make  the  selection,  and 
any  of  the  old  poems  which  they  deem  sufficient  they  shall 
include;  any  that  is  deficient  or  altogether  unsuitable,  they 
shall  either  utterly  throw  aside,  or  examine  and  amend, 
taking  into  their  counsel  poets  and  musicians,  and  making 
use  of  their  poetical  genius;  but  explaining  to  them  the 
wishes  of  the  legislator  in  order  that  they  may  regulate 
dancing,  music,  and  all  choral  strains,  according  to  his 
mind;  and  not  allowing  them  to  indulge,  except  in  some 
minor  matters,  their  individual  pleasures  and  fancies.  Now, 
the  irregular  strain  of  music  is  always  made  ten  thousand 
times  better  by  attaining  to  law  and  order,  and  rejecting 
the  honied  Muse  —  not  however  that  we  mean  wholly  to 
exclude  pleasure,  which  is  the  characteristic  of  all  music. 
And  if  a  man  be  brought  up  from  childhood  to  the  age  of 
discretion  and  maturity  in  the  use  of  the  orderly  and  severe 
•music,  when  he  hears  the  opposite  he  detests  it,  and  calls 
it  illiberal;  but  if  trained  in  the  sweet  and  vulgar  music, 
he  deems  the  opposite  cold  and  displeasing.  So  that,  as  T 
was  saying  before,  while  he  who  hears  them  gains  no  more 
pleasure  from  the  one  than  from  the  other,  the  one  has 
the  advantage  of  making  those  who  are  trained  in  it  better 
men,  whereas  the  other  makes  them  worse. 

CLE.     Very  true. 

ATH.  Again,  we  must  distinguish  and  determine  on 
some  general  principle  what  songs  are  suitable  to  women, 
and  what  to  men,  and  must  assign  to  them  their  proper 
melodies  and  rhythms.  It  is  shocking  for  a  whole  har- 
mony to  be  inharmonical,  or  for  a  rhythm  to  be  unrhyth- 
mical, and  this  will  happen  when  the  melody  is  inappro- 
priate to  them.  And,  therefore,  the  legislator  must  assign 
*o  them  also  their  forms.  Now,  both  sexes  have  melodies 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  21 

and  rhythms  which  of  necessity  belong  to  them ;  and  those 
of  women  are  clearly  enough  indicated  by  their  natural 
difference.  The  grand,  and  that  which  tends  to  courage, 
may  be  fairly  called  manly ;  but  that  which  inclines  to  mod- 
eration and  temperance,  may  be  declared  both  in  law  and 
in  ordinary  speech  to  be  the  more  womanly  quality:  this, 
then,  will  be  the  general  order  of  them. 

Let  us  now  speak  of  the  manner  of  teaching  and  im- 
parting them,  and  the  persons  to  whom,  and  the  time 
when,  they  are  severally  to  be  imparted.  As  the  ship- 
wright first  lays  down  the  lines  of  the  keel,  and  draws  the 
design  in  outline,  so  do  I  seek  to  distinguish  the  patterns 
of  life,  and  lay  down  their  keels  according  to  the  nature 
of. different  men's  souls;  seeking  truly  to  consider  by  what 
means,  and  in  what  ways,  we  may  go  through  the  voyage 
of  life  best.  Now,  human  affairs  are  hardly  worth  con- 
sidering in  earnest,  and  yet  we  must  be  in  earnest  about 
them, —  a  sad  necessity  constrains  us.  And  having  got  thus 
far,  there  will  be  a  fitness  in  our  completing  the  matter,  if 
we  can  only  find  some  suitable  means  of  doing  so.  But 
what  am  I  saying?  And  yet  very  probably  there  may  be  a 
meaning  latent  in  these  very  words. 

CLE.     To  be  sure. 

ATH.  I  say,  that  about  serious  matters  a  man  should  be 
serious,  and  about  a  matter  which  is  not  serious  he  should 
not  be  serious ;  and  that  God  is  the  natural  and  worthy 
object  of  a  man's  most  serious  and  blessed  endeavors ;  who, 
as  I  said  before,  is  made  to  be  the  plaything  of  God,  and 
that  this,  truly  considered,  is  the  best  of  him ;  wherefore 
every  man  and  woman  should  walk  seriously,  and  pass  life 
in  the  noblest  of  pastimes,  and  be  of  another  mind  from 
what  they  now  are. 

CLE.     In  what  respect? 

ATH.     Now  they  think  that  their  serious  pursuits  should 


23  PLATO 

be  for  the  sake  of  their  sports,  for  they  deem  war  a  serious 
pursuit,  which  must  be  managed  well  for  the  sake  of  peace ; 
but  the  truth, is,  that  there  neither  is,  nor  has  been,  nor 
ever  will  be,  either  amusement  or  instruction  in  any  degree 
worth  speaking  of  in  war,  which  is  nevertheless  deemed 
by  us  to  be  the  most  serious  of  our  pursuits.  And  there- 
fore, as  we  say,  every  one  of  us  should  live  the  life  of 
peace  as  long  and  as  well  as  he  can.  And  what  is  the 
right  way  of  living?  Are  we  to  live  in  sports  always?  If 
so,  in  what  kind  of  sports?  We  ought  to  live  sacrificing, 
and  singing,  and  dancing,  and  then  a  man  will  be  able  to 
propitiate  the  Gods,  and  to  defend  himself  against  his 
enemies  and  conquer  them  in  battle.  The  type  of  song 
or  dance  by  which  he  will  propitiate  them  has  been  de- 
scribed, and  the  paths  along  which  he  is  to  proceed  have 
been  cut  for  him.  He  will  go  forward  in  the  spirit  of  the 
poet : — 

"  Telemachus,  some  things  thou  wilt  thyself  find  in  thy  heart,  but 
other  things  God  will  suggest ;  for  I  deem  that  thou  wast  not  born  or 
brought  up  without  the  will  of  the  Gods." 

And  this  ought  to  be  the  view  of  our  alumni;  they  ought 
to  think  that  what  has  been  said  is  enough  for  them,  and 
that  any  other  things  some  God  or  a  demigod  will  suggest 
to  them  —  he  will  tell  them  to  whom,  and  when,  and  to 
what  Gods  severally  they  are  to  sacrifice  and  perform 
dances,  and  how  they  may  propitiate  the  deities,  and  live 
according  to  the  appointment  of  nature ;  being  for  the  most 
part  puppets,  but  having  some  little  share  of  reality. 

MEG.     You  have  a  low  opinion  of  mankind,  Stranger. 

ATH.  Nay,  Megillus,  I  was  only  comparing  them  with 
the  Gods ;  and  under  that  feeling  I  spoke.  Let  us  grant,  if 
you  wish,  that  the  human  race  is  not  to  be  despised,  but 
is  worthy  of  some  consideration. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  23 

Next  follow  the  buildings  for  gymnasia  and  schools 
open  to  all ;  these  are  to  be  in  three  places  in  the  midst  of 
the  city;  and  outside  the  city  and  in  the  surrounding  coun- 
try there  shall  be  schools  for  horse  exercise,  and  open 
spaces  also  in  three  places,  arranged  with  a  view  to  archery 
and  the  throwing  of  missiles,  at  which  young  men  may 
learn  and  practice.  Of  these  mention  has  already  been 
made ;  and  if  the  mention  be  not  sufficiently  explicit,  let  us 
speak  further  of  them  and  embody  them  in  laws.  In  these 
several  schools  let  there  be  dwellings  for  teachers,  who 
shall  be  brought  from  foreign  parts  by  pay,  and  let  them 
teach  the  frequenters  of  the  school  the  art  of  war  and  the 
art  of  music,  and  the  children  shall  come,  not  only  if  their 
parents  please,  but  if  they  do  not  please;  and  if  their  edu- 
cation is  neglected,  there  shall  be  compulsory  education, 
as  the  saying  is,  of  all  and  sundry,  as  far  as  this  is  possible ; 
and  the  pupils  shall  be  regarded  as  belonging  to  the  state 
rather  than  to  their  parents.  My  law  would  apply  to 
females  as  well  as  males;  they  shall  both  go  through  the 
same  exercises.  I  assert  without  fear  of  contradiction  that 
gymnastic  and  horsemanship  are  as  suitable  to  women  as 
to  men.  Of  the  truth  of  this  I  am  persuaded  from  ancient 
tradition,  and  at  the  present  day  there  are  said  to  be  myr- 
iads of  women  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Black  Sea,  called 
Sauromatides,  who  not  only  ride  on  horseback  like  men, 
but  have  enjoined  upon  them  the  use  of  bows  and  other 
weapons  equally  with  the  men.  And  I  further  affirm,  that 
if  these  things  are  possible,  nothing  can  be  more  absurd 
than  the  practice  which  prevails  in  our  own  country  of 
men  and  women  not  following  the  same  pursuits  with  all 
their  strength  and  with  one  mind,  for  thus  the  state,  instead 
of  being  a  whole,  is  reduced  to  a  half,  and  yet  has  the  same 
imposts  to  pay  and  the  same  toils  to  undergo;  and  what 
can  be  a  greater  mistake  for  any  legislator  to  make? 


24  PLATO 

CLE.  Very  true;  and  much  of  what  has  been  asserted 
by  us,  Stranger,  is  contrary  to  the  custom  of  states;  still, 
in  saying  that  the  discourse  should  be  allowed  to  proceed, 
and  that  when  the  discussion  is  completed,  we  should 
choose  what  seems  best,  you  have  spoken  very  properly, 
and  have  made  me  feel  compunction  for  what  I  said.  Tell 
me,  then,  what  you  would  next  wish  to  say. 

ATH.  I  should  wish  to  say,  Cleinias,  as  I  said  before, 
that  if  the  possibility  of  these  things  were  not  sufficiently 
proven  in  fact,  then  there  might  be  an  objection  to  the 
argument,  but  the  fact  being  as  I  have  said,  he  who  rejects 
the  law  must  find  some  other  ground  of  objection;  and, 
failing  this,  our  exhortation  will  still  hold  good,  nor  will 
any  one  deny  that  women  ought  to  share  as  far  as  possible 
in  education  and  in  other  ways  with  men,  for  consider ; —  if 
women  do  not  share  in  their  whole  life  with  men,  then 
they  must  have  some  other  order  of  life. 

CLE.     Certainly. 

ATH.  And  what  arrangement  of  life  to  be  found  any- 
where is  preferable  to  this  community  which  we  are  now 
assigning  to  them?  Shall  we  prefer  that  which  is  adopted 
by  the  Thracians  and  many  other  races  who  use  their 
women  to  till  the  ground  and  to  be  shepherds  of  their 
herds  and  flocks,  and  to  minister  to  them  like  slaves?  Or 
shall  we  do  as  we  and  people  in  our  part  of  the  world  do? 
getting  together,  as  the  phrase  is,  all  our  goods  and  chat- 
tels into  one  dwelling  —  these  we  entrust  to  our  women, 
who  are  the  stewards  of  them ;  and  who  also  preside  over 
the  shuttles  and  the  whole  art  of  spinning.  Or  shall  we 
take  a  middle  course,  as  in  Lacedaemon,  Megillus,  letting 
the  girls  share  in  gymnastic  and  music,  while  the  grown-up 
women,  no  longer  employed  in  spinning  wool,  are  actively 
engaged  in  weaving  the  web  of  life,  which  will  be  no  cheap 
or  mean  employment,  and  in  the  duty  of  serving  and  tak- 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  25 

ing  care  of  the  household  and  bringing  up  children  in 
which  they  will  observe  a  sort  of  mean,  not  participating 
in  the  toils  of  war;  and  if  there  were  any  necessity  that 
they  should  fight  for  their  city  and  families,  unlike  the 
Amazons,  they  would  be  unable  to  take  part  in  archery  or 
any  other  skilled  use  of  missiles,  nor  could  they,  after  the 
example  of  the  Goddess,  carry  shield  or  spear,  or  stand 
up  nobly  for  their  country  when  it  was  being  destroyed, 
and  strike  terror  into  their  enemies,  if  only  because  they 
were  seen  in  regular  order  ?  Living  as  they  do,  they  would 
never  dare  at  all  to  imitate  the  Sauromatides,  whose 
women,  when  compared  with  ordinary  women,  would  ap- 
pear to  be  like  men.  Let  him  who  will,  praise  your  legis- 
lators, but  I  must  say  what  I  think.  The  legislator  ought 
to  be  whole  and  perfect,  and  not  half  a  man  only ;  he  ought 
not  to  let  the  female  sex  live  softly  and  waste  money  and 
have  no  order  of  life,  while  he  takes  the  utmost  care  of  the 
male  sex,  and  leaves  half  of  life  only  blest  with  happiness, 
when  he  might  have  made  the  whole  state  happy. 

MEG.  What  shall  we  do,  Cleinias?  Shall  we  allow  a 
stranger  to  run  down  Sparta  in  this  fashion? 

CLE.  Yes;  for  as  we  have  given  him  liberty  of  speech 
we  must  let  him  go  on  until  we  have  perfected  the  work 
of  legislation. 

MEG.     Very  true. 

ATH.     Then  now  I  may  proceed? 

CLE.     By  all  means. 

ATH.  What  will  be  the  manner  of  life  among  men  who 
may  be  supposed  to  have  their  food  and  clothing  provided 
for  them  in  moderation,  and  who  have  entrusted  the  prac- 
tice of  the  arts  to  others,  and  whose  husbandry,  committed 
to  slaves  paying  a  part  of  the  produce,  brings  them  a 
return  sufficient  for  men  living  temperately;  who,  more- 
over, have  common  tables  in  which  the  men  are  placed 


26  PLATO 

apart,  and  near  them  are  the  common  tables  of  their  fam- 
ilies, of  their  daughters  and  mothers,  which  day  by  day, 
the  rulers,  male  and  female,  are  to  inspect  and  look  to 
their  mode  of  life  and  so  dismiss  them;  after  which  the 
magistrate  and  his  attendants  shall  honor  with  libations 
those  Gods  to  whom  that  day  and  night  are  dedicated,  and 
then  go  home?  To  men  whose  lives  are  thus  ordered,  is 
there  no  work  to  be  done  which  is  necessary  and  fitting, 
but  shall  each  one  of  them  live  fattening  like  a  beast? 
Such  a  life  is  neither  just  nor  honorable,  nor  can  he  who 
lives  it  fail  of  meeting  his  due;  and  the  due  reward  of  the 
idle  fatted  beast  is  that  he  should  be  torn  in  pieces  by 
some  other  valiant  beast  whose  fatness  is  worn  down  by 
labors  and  toils.  These  regulations,  if  we  duly  consider 
them,  will  never  perfectly  take  effect  under  present  cir- 
cumstances, nor  as  long  as  women  and  children  and  houses 
and  all  other  things  are  the  private  property  of  individuals ; 
but  if  we  can  attain  the  second-best  form  of  polity,  with 
that  we  may  be  satisfied.  And  to  men  living  under  this 
second  polity  there  remains  a  work  to  be  accomplished 
which  is  far  from  being  small  or  insignificant,  but  is  the 
greatest  of  all  works,  and  ordained  by  the  appointment  of 
righteous  law.  For  a  life  which  is  wholly  concerned  with 
the  virtue  of  body  and  soul  may  truly  be  said  to  be  twice, 
or  more  than  twice,  as  full  of  toil  and  trouble  as  the  pur- 
suit after  Pythian  and  Olympic  victories,  which  debars  a 
man  from  every  employment  of  life.  For  there  ought  to 
be  no  bye-work  interfering  with  the  greater  work  of  pro- 
viding the  necessary  exercise  and  nourishment  for  the 
body,  and  instruction  and  education  for  the  soul.  Night 
and  day  are  not  long  enough  for  the  accomplishment  of 
their  perfection  and  consummation ;  and  therefore  to  this 
end  all  freemen  ought  to  arrange  the  time  of  their  em- 
ployments during  the  whole  course  of  the  twenty-four 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS''  27 

hours,  from  morning  to  evening  and  from  evening  to  the 
morning  of  the  next  sunrise.  There  may  seem  to  be  some 
impropriety  in  the  legislator  determining  minutely  the  little 
details  of  the  management  of  the  house,  including  such 
particulars  as  the  duty  of  wakefulness  in  those  who  are 
to  be  perpetual  watchmen  of  the  whole  city;  for  that 
any  citizen  should  continue  during  the  whole  night  in 
sleep,  instead  of  being  seen  by  all  his  servants,  always  the 
first  to  awake  and  the  first  to  rise  —  this,  whether  the 
regulation  is  to  be  called  a  law  or  only  a  practice,  should 
be  deemed  base  and  unworthy  of  a  freeman ;  also  that  the 
mistress  of  the  house  should  be  awakened  by  her  "hand- 
maidens instead  of  herself  first  awakening  them,  is  what 
her  slaves,  male  and  female,  and  her  children,  and,  if  that 
were  possible,  everything  in  the  house  should  regard  as 
base.  If  they  rise  early,  they  may  all  of  them  do  much  of 
their  public  and  of  their  household  business,  as  magis- 
trates in  the  city,  and  masters  and  mistresses  in  their  pri- 
vate houses,  before  the  sun  is  up.  Much  sleep  is  not 
required  by  nature,  either  for  our  souls  or  bodies,  or  for 
the  actions  in  which  they  are  concerned.  For  no  one  who 
is  asleep  is  good  for  anything,  any  more  than  if  he  were 
dead;  but  he  of  us  who  has  the  most  regard  for  life  and 
reason  keeps  awake  as  long  as  he  can,  reserving  only  so 
much  time  for  sleep  as  is  expedient  for  health ;  and  much 
sleep  is  not  required,  if  the  habit  of  not  sleeping  be  once 
formed.  Magistrates  in  states  who  keep  awake  at  night 
are  terrible  to  the  bad,  whether  enemies  or  citizens,  and 
are  honored  and  reverenced  by  the  just  and  temperate,  and 
are  useful  to  themselves  and  to  the  whole  state. 

A  night  which  is  short  and  devoted  to  work,  in  addition 
to  all  the  above-mentioned  advantages,  infuses  a  sort  of 
courage  into  the  minds  of  the  citizens.  When  the  day 
breaks,  the  time  has  arrived  for  youth  to  go  to  their  school- 


28  PLATO 

masters.  Now,  neither  sheep  nor  any  other  animals,  can 
live  without  a  shepherd,  nor  can  children  be  left  with- 
out tutors,  or  slaves  without  masters.  And  of  all  animals 
the  boy  is  the  most  unmanageable,  inasmuch  as  he  has 
the  fountain  of  reason  in  him  not  yet  regulated;  he  is  the 
most  insidious,  sharp-witted,  and  insubordinate  of  animals. 
Wherefore  he  must  be  bound  with  many  bridles;  in  the 
first  place,  when  he  gets  away  from  mothers  and  nurses, 
he  must  be  under  the  control  of  tutors  on  account  of  his 
childishness  and  foolishness ;  then,  again,  being  a  free- 
man, he  must  have  teachers  and  be  educated  by  them  in 
anything  which  they  teach,  and  must  learn  what  he  has  to 
learn;  but  he  is  also  a  slave,  and  in  that  regard  any  free- 
man who  comes  in  his  way  may  punish  him  and  his  tutor 
and  his  instructor,  if  any  of  them  does  "anything  wrong; 
and  he  who  comes  across  him  and  does  not  inflict  upon 
him  the  punishment  which  he  deserves,  shall  incur  the 
greatest  disgrace ;  and  let  the  guardian  of  the  law,  who  is 
the  director  of  education,  see  to  him  who  coming  in  the 
way  of  the  offenses  which  we  have  mentioned,  does  not 
chastise  them  when  he  ought,  or  chastises  them  in  a  way 
which  he  ought  not;  let  him  keep  a  sharp  look-out,  and 
take  especial  care  of  the  training  of  our  children,  directing 
their  natures,  and  always  turning  them  to  good  according 
to  the  law. 

And  how  can  our  law  sufficiently  train  the  director  of 
education  himself;  for  as  yet  all  has  been  imperfect,  and 
nothing  has  been  said  either  clear  or  satisfactory?  Now, 
as  far  as  possible,  the  law  ought  to  leave  nothing  to  him, 
but  to  explain  everything,  that  he  may  be  the  interpreter 
and  tutor  of  others.  About  dances  and  music  and  choral 
strains,  I  have  already  spoken  both  as  to  the  character  of 
the  selection  of  them,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  are 
to  be  improved  and  consecrated.  But  we  have  not  yet 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  29 

spoken,  O  illustrious  guardian  of  education,  of  the  manner 
in  which  your  pupils  are  to  use  those  strains  which  are 
written  in  prose,  although  you  have  been  informed  what 
martial  strains  they  are  to  learn  and  practice;  what  relates 
in  the  first  place  to  the  learning  of  letters,  and  secondly, 
to  the  lyre,  and  also  to  calculation,  which,  as  we  were 
saying,  is  needful  for  them  all  to  learn,  and  any  other 
things  which  are  required  with  a  view  to  war  and  the 
management  of  house  and  city,  and,  looking  to  the  same 
object,  what  is  useful  in  the  revolutions  of  the  heavenly 
bodies  —  the  stars  and  sun  and  moon,  and  the  various 
regulations  about  these  matters  which  are  necessary  for 
the  whole  state  —  I  am  speaking  of  the  arrangements  of 
days  in  periods  of  months,  and  of  months  in  years,  which 
are  to  be  observed,  in  order  that  times  and  sacrifices  and 
festivals  may  proceed  in  regular  and  natural  order,  and 
keep  the  city  alive  and  awake,  the  Gods  receiving  the 
honors  due  to  them,  and  men  having  a  better  understand- 
ing about  them;  all  these  things,  O  my  friend,  have  not 
yet  been  sufficiently  declared  by  the  legislator.  Attend, 
then,  to  what  I  am  now  going  to  say :  We  were  telling  you, 
in  the  first  place,  that  you  were  not  sufficiently  informed 
about  letters,  and  the  objection  made  was  to  this  effect, — 
"  That  you  were  never  told  whether  he  who  was  meant  to 
be  a  respectable  citizen  should  apply  himself  in  detail  to 
that  sort  of  learning,  or  not  apply  himself  at  all;"  and 
the  same  remark  was  made  about  the  lyre.  But  now  we 
say  that  he  ought  to  attend  to  them.  A  fair  time  for  a 
boy  of  ten  years  old  to  spend  in  letters  is  three  years;  at 
thirteen  years  he  should  begin  to  handle  the  lyre,  and  he 
may  continue  at  this  for  another  three  years,  neither  more 
nor  less,  and  whether  his  father  or  himself  like  or  dislike 
the  study,  he  is  not  to  be  allowed  to  spend  more  or  less 
time  in  learning  music  than  the  law  allows.  And  let  him 


30  PLATO 

who  disobeys  the  law  be  deprived  of  those  youthful  honors 
of  which  we  shall  hereafter  speak.  Hear,  however,  first 
of  all,  what  the  young  ought  to  learn  in  the  early  years  of 
life,  and  what  their  instructors  ought  to  teach  them.  They 
ought  to  be  occupied  with  their  letters  until  they  are  able 
to  read  and  write;  but  the  acquisition  of  perfect  beauty 
or  quickness  in  writing,  if  nature  has  not  stimulated  them 
to  acquire  these  accomplishments  in  the  given  number  -of 
years,  they  should  let  alone.  And  as  to  the  learning  of 
compositions  committed  to  writing  which  are  unaccom- 
panied by  song,  whether  metrical  or  without  rhythmical 
divisions,  compositions  in  prose,  as  they  are  termed,  having 
no  rhythm  or  harmony  —  seeing  how  dangerous  are  the 
writings  handed  down  to  us  by  many  writers  of  this  class 
—  what  will  you  do  with  them,  O  most  excellent  guardians 
of  the  law  ?  or  how  can  the  lawgiver  rightly  direct  you  about 
them?  I  believe  that  he  will  be  in  great  difficulty. 

CLE.  What  troubles  you,  Stranger?  and  why  are  you 
so  perplexed  in  your  mind? 

ATH.  You  naturally  ask,  Cleinias,  and  to  you,  who  are 
my  partners  in  the  work  of  education,  I  must  state  the 
difficulties  of  the  case. 

CLE.     To  what  do  you  refer  in  this  instance? 

ATH.  I  will  tell  you.  There  is  a  difficulty  in  opposing 
many  myriads  of  mouths. 

CLE.  Well,  and  have  we  not  already  opposed  the  popu- 
lar voice  in  many  important  enactments? 

ATH.  That  is  quite  true ;  and  you  mean  to  imply  that 
the  road  which  we  are  taking  may  be  disagreeable  to  some 
but  is  agreeable  to  as  many  others,  or  if  not  to  as  many,  at 
any  rate  to  persons  not  inferior  to  the  others,  and  in  com- 
pany with  them  you  bid  me,  at  whatever  risk,  proceed 
along  the  path  of  legislation  which  has  opened  out  of  our 
present  discourse,  and  to  be  of  good  cheer,  and  not  to  faint. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "LAWS"  31 

CLE.     Certainly. 

ATH.  And  I  do  not  faint;  I  say,  indeed,  that  we  have 
a  great  many  poets  writing  in  hexameter,  trimeter,  and  all 
sorts  of  measures  —  some  who  are  serious,  others  who  aim 
only  at  raising  a  laugh  —  and  all  mankind  declare  that  the 
youth  who  are  rightly  educated  should  be  brought  up  and 
saturated  with  them ;  they  should  be  constantly  hearing 
them  read  at  recitations,  and  some  would  have  them  learn 
by  heart  entire  poets;  while  others  select  choice  passages 
and  long  speeches,  and  make  compendiums  of  them,  saying 
that  these  shall  be  committed  to  memory,  and  that  in  this 
way  only  can  a  man  be  made  good  and  wise  by  experience 
and  learning.  And  you  want  me  to  say  plainly  in  what 
they  are  right  and  in  what  they  are  wrong. 

CLE.     Yes,  I  do. 

ATH.  But  how  can  I  in  one  word  rightly  comprehend 
all  of  them?  I  am  of  opinion,  and,  if  I  am  not  mistaken, 
there  is  a  general  agreement,  that  every  one  of  these  poets 
has  said  many  things  well  and  many  things  the  reverse  of 
well;  and  if  this  be  true,  then  I  do  affirm  that  much  learn- 
ing brings  danger  to  youth. 

CLE.  Then  how  would  you  advise  the  guardian  of  the 
law  to  act? 

ATH.     In  what  respect? 

CLE.  I  mean  to  what  pattern  should  he  look  as  his 
guide  in  permitting  the  young  to  learn  some  things  and 
forbidding  them  to  learn  others?  Do  not  shrink  from 
answering. 

ATH.  My  good  Cleinias,  I  rather  think  that  I  am  fortu- 
nate. 

CLE.     In  what? 

ATH.  I  think  that  I  am  not  wholly  in  want  of  a  pattern, 
for  when  I  consider  the  words  which  we  have  spoken  from 
early  dawn  until  now,  and  which,  as  I  believe,  have  been 


33  PLATO 

inspired  by  Heaven,  they  appear  to  me  to  be  quite  like  a 
poem.  When  I  reflected  upon  all  these  words  of  ours,  1 
naturally  felt  pleasure,  for  of  all  the  discourses  which  I  have 
ever  learnt  or  heard,  either  in  poetry  ,or  prose,  this  seemed 
to  me  to  be  the  justest,  and  most  suitable  for  young  men 
to  hear;  I  cannot  imagine  any  better  pattern  than  this 
which  the  guardian  of  the  law  and  the  educator  can  have. 
They  cannot  do  better  than  advise  the  teachers  to  teach  the 
young  these  and  the  like  words,  and  if  they  should  happen 
to  find  writings,  either  in  poetry  or  pros^,  or  even  unwritten 
discourses  like  these  of  ours,  and  of  the  same  family,  they 
should  certainly  preserve  them,  and  commit  them  to  writ- 
ing. And,  first  of  all,  they  shall  constrain  the  teachers 
themselves  to  learn  and  approve  them,  and  any  of  them 
who  will  not,  shall  not  be  employed  by  them,  but  those 
whom  they  find  agreeing  in  their  judgment,  they  shall  make 
use  of  and  shall  commit  to  them  the  instruction  and  educa- 
tion of  youth.  And  here  and  on  this  wise  let  my  fanciful 
tale  about  letters  and  teachers  of  letters  come  to  an  end. 


II.    ARISTOTLE. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

By  common  consent  Aristotle  ranks  as  one  of  the  greatest 
thinkers  of  classical  antiquity.  His  influence  in  the  philo- 
sophic world,  though  far  less  at  the  present  time  than  it 
was  formerly,  has  been  almost  unbroken  for  more  than  two 
thousand  years.  He  was  born  at  Stagira,  in  Macedonia, 
384  B.  C,  springing  from  a  family  in  which  the  practice 
of  medicine,  such  as  it  was  in  that  day,  was  hereditary. 
His  father  was  physician  to  Amyntas,  King  of  Macedonia, 
and  grandfather  of  Alexander  the  Great.  Aristotle  him- 
self was  probably  intended  for  the  medical  profession,  and 
to  this  fact  was  due  no  doubt  his  interest  in  anatomy.  But 
in  early  manhood  he  gave  up  medicine  for  philosophy.  He 
became  a  disciple  of  Plato,  and  by  his  penetration  of  mind 
gained  the  distinction  of  being  called  "  the  intellect  of  the 
school." 

In  342  B.  C,  when  his  fame  as  a  philosopher  had  become 
established,  he  was  appointed  teacher  of  Alexander  the 
Great,  then  a  lad  of  fourteen.  The  course  of  instruction 
he  followed  with  his  illustrious  pupil  is  not  known  in  its 
details,  but  was  presumably  that  which  prevailed  at  Athens. 
He  enjoyed  the  highest  confidence  of  both  Philip  and  Alex- 
ander, and  during  his  three  or  four  years  of  service  as  tutor, 
he  received  many  marks  of  favor  at  their  hands.  Among 
these  may  be  mentioned  the  restoration  of  his  native  town 
Stagira,  which  had  been  destroyed  by  war,  and  the  erection 
there  of  a  gymnasium  for  his  philosophical  lectures. 

PAINTER  PED.   Ess. —  3  33 


34  ARISTOTLE 

When  Alexander  entered  upon  his  great  expedition  of 
conquest  into  Asia,  Aristotle  returned  to  Athens  and  estab- 
lished a  school  in  the  Lyceum.  He  lectured  to  a  circle  of 
disciples  as  he  walked  about  the  shady  avenues;  and  this 
fact  has  given  to  his  school  of  philosophy  the  name  Peri- 
patetic. His  scholarship  embraced  the  whole  range  of 
knowledge.  Unlike  his  great  theorizing  teacher,  Aristotle 
was  a  careful  and  practical  investigator;  he  invented  the 
science  of  logic,  and  made  valuable  contributions  to  many 
other  departments  of  learning. 

Aristotle  has  treated  of  education  more  or  less  fully  in 
several  works.  His  "  Rhetoric  "  and  "  Poetics  "  are  pro- 
found treatises  that  may  still  be  studied  with  great  profit. 
His  "  Nichomachean  Ethics  "  touches  repeatedly  but  briefly 
on  education.  It  is  in  his  "  Politics  "  that  he  has  treated 
the  subject  most  fully;  but  his  discussion  is  unfortunately 
incomplete,  and  it  is  greatly  to  be  regretted  that  he  never 
fulfilled  his  promise  to  return  to  it.  The  following  extract 
is  taken  from  the  translation  in  Bohn's  Classical  Library. 
It  includes  part  of  Book  VII.  and  the  whole  of  Book  VIII. 
of  the  "  Politics." 

SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  POLITICS  "  OF  ARISTOTLE. 

BOOK   VII. 

13.  It  follows  then  from  what  has  been  said  that  some 
things  the  legislator  must  find  ready  to  his  hand  in  a  state, 
others  he  must  provide.  And  therefore  we  can  only  say : 
May  our  state  be  constituted  in  such  a  manner  as  to  be 
blessed  with  the  goods  of  which  fortune  disposes  (for  we 
acknowledge  her  power)  :  whereas  virtue  and  goodness  in 
the  state  are  not  a  matter  of  chance  but  the  result  of  knowl- 
edge and  purpose.*  A  city  can  be  virtuous  only  when  the 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  35 

citizens  who  have  a  share  in  the  government  are  virtuous, 
and  in  our  state  all  the  citizens  share  in  the  government; 
let  us  then  inquire  how  a  man  becomes  virtuous.  For  even 
if  we  could  suppose  all  the  citizens  to  be  virtuous,  and  not 
each  of  them,  yet  the  latter  would  be  better,  for  in  the  virtue 
of  each  the  virtue  of  all  is  involved. 

There  are  three  things  which  make  men  good  and  vir- 
tuous: these  are  nature,  habit,  reason.  In  the  first  place, 
every  one  must  be  born  a  man  and  not  some  other  animal; 
in  the  second  place,  he  must  have  certain  character,  both 
of  body  and  soul.  But  some  qualities  there  is  no  use  in 
having  at  birth,  for  they  are  altered  by  habit,  and  there 
are  some  gifts  of  nature  which  may  be  turned  by  habit  to 
good  or  bad.  Most  animals  lead  a  life  of  nature,  although 
in  lesser  particulars  some  are  influenced  by  habit  as  well. 
Man  has  reason,  in  addition,  and  man  only.  Wherefore 
nature,  habit,  reason  must  be  in  harmony  with  one  another 
(for  they  do  not  always  agree)  ;  men  do  many  things  against 
habit  and  nature,  if  reason  persuades  them  that  they  ought. 
We  have  already  determined  what  natures  are  likely  to  be 
most  easily  molded  by  the  hands  of  the  legislator.  All 
else  is  the  work  of  education ;  we  learn  some  things  by 
habit  and  some  by  instruction. 

14.  Since  every  political  society  is  composed  of  rulers 
and  subjects,  let  us  consider  whether  the  relations  of  one 
to  the  other  should  interchange  or  be  permanent.  For  the 
education  of  the  citizens  will  necessarily  vary  with  the 
answer  given  to  this  question.  Now,  if  some  men  excelled 
others  in  the  same  degree  in  which  gods  and  heroes  are 
supposed  to  excel  mankind  in  general,  having  in  the  first 
place  a  great  advantage  even  in  their  bodies,  and  secondly 
in  their  minds,  so  that  the  superiority  of  the  governors 
over  their  subjects  was  patent  and  undisputed,  it  would 
clearly  be  better  that  once  for  all  the  one  class  should  rule 


36  ARISTOTLE 

and  the  others  serve.  But  since  this  is  unattainable,  and 
kings  have  no  marked  superiority  over  their  subjects,  such 
as  Scylax  affirms  to  be  found  among  the  Indians,  it  is 
obviously  necessary  on  many  grounds  that  all  the  citizens 
alike  should  take  their  turn  in  governing  and  being  gov- 
erned. Equality  consists  in  the  same  treatment  of  similar 
persons,  and  no  government  can  stand  which  is  not  founded 
upon  justice.  For  (if  the  government  be  unjust)  every  one 
in  the  country  unites  with  the  governed  in  the  desire  to  have 
a  revolution,  and  it  is  an  impossibility  that  the  members  of 
the  government  can  be  so  numerous  as  to  be  stronger  than 
all  their  enemies  put  together.  Yet  that  governors  should 
excel  their  subjects  is  undeniable.  How  all  this  is  to  be 
effected,  and  in  what  way  they  will  respectively  share  in 
the  government,  the  legislator  has  to  consider.  The  sub- 
ject has  been  already  mentioned.  Nature  herself  has  given 
the  principle  of  choice  when  she  made  a  difference  between 
old  and  young  (though  they  are  really  the  same  in  kind), 
of  whom  she  fitted  the  one  to  govern  and  the  others  to  be 
governed.  No  one  takes  offense  at  being  governed  when 
he  is  young,  nor  does  he  think  himself  better  than  his  gov- 
ernors, especially  if  he  will  enjoy  the  same  privilege  when 
he  reaches  the  required  age. 

We  conclude  that  from  one  point  of  view  governors  and 
governed  are  identical,  and  from  another  different.  And 
therefore  their  education  must  be  the  same  and  also  differ- 
ent. For  he  who  would  learn  to  command  well  must,  as 
men  say,  first  of  all  learn  to  obey.  As  I  observed  in  the 
first  part  of  this  treatise,  there  is  one  rule  which  is  for  the 
sake  of  the  rulers  and  another  rule  which  is  for  the  sake 
of  the  ruled;  the  former  is  a  despotic,  the  latter  a  free 
government.  Some  commands  differ  not  in  the  thing  com- 
manded, but  in  the  intention  with  which  they  are  imposed. 
Wherefore,  many  apparently  menial  offices  are  an  honor  to 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS''  37 

the  free  youth  by  whom  they  are  performed ;  for  actions  do 
not  differ  as  honorable  or  dishonorable  in  themselves  so 
much  as  in  the  end  and  intention  of  them.  But  since  we 
say  that  the  virtue  of  the  citizen  and  ruler  is  the  same  as 
that  of  the  good  man,  and  that  the  same  person  must  first 
be  a  subject  and  then  a  ruler,  the  legislator  has  to  see  that 
they  become  good  men,  and  by  what  means  this  may  be 
accomplished,  and  what  is  the  end  of  the  perfect  life. 

Now  the  soul  of  man  is  divided  into  two  parts,  one  of 
which  has  reason  in  itself,  and  the  other,  not  having  rea- 
son in  itself,  is  able  to  obey  reason.  And  we  call  a  man 
good  because  he  has  the  virtues  of  these  two  parts.  In 
which  of  them  the  end  is  more  likely  to  be  found  is  no 
matter  of  doubt  to  those  who  adopt  our  division ;  for  in 
the  world  both  of  nature  and  of  art  the  inferior  always 
exists  for  the  sake  of  the  better  or  superior,  and  the  better 
or  superior  is  that  which  has  reason.  The  reason  too,  in 
our  ordinary  way  of  speaking,  is  divided  into  two  parts  for 
there  is  a  practical  and  a  speculative  reason,  and  there  must 
be  a  corresponding  division  of  actions ;  the  actions  of  the 
naturally  better  principle  are  to  be  preferred  by  those  who 
have  it  in  their  power  to  attain  to  both  or  to  all,  for  that 
is  always  to  every  one  the  most  eligible  which  is  the  high- 
est attainable  by  him.  The  whole  of  life  is  further  divided 
into  two  parts,  business  and  leisure,  war  and  peace,  and  all 
actions  into  those  which  are  necessary  and  useful,  and 
those  which  are  honorable.  And  the  preference  given  to 
one  or  the  other  class  of  actions  must  necessarily  be  like 
the  preference  given  to  one  or  other  part  of  the  soul  and 
its  actions  over  the  other;  there  must  be  war  for  the  sake 
of  peace,  business  for  the  sake  of  leisure,  things  useful 
and  necessary  for  the  sake  of  things  honorable.  All 
these  points  the  statesman  should  keep  in  view  when  he 
frames  his  laws ;  he  should  consider  the  parts  of  the  soul 


38  ARISTOTLE 

and  their  functions,  and  above  all  the  better  and  the  end; 
he  should  also  remember  the  diversities  of  human  lives 
and  actions.  For  men  must  engage  in  business  and  go  to 
war,  but  leisure  and  peace  are  better;  they  must  do  what 
is  necessary  and  useful,  but  what  is  honorable  is  better. 
In  such  principles  children  and  persons  of  every  age  which 
requires  education  should  be  trained.  Whereas  even  the 
Hellenes  of  the  present  day,  who  are  reputed  to  be  best 
governed,  and  the  legislators  who  gave  them  their  consti- 
tutions, do  not  appear  to  have  framed  their  governments 
with  a  regard  to  the  best  end,  or  to  have  given  them  laws 
and  education  with  a  view  to  all  the  virtues,  but  in  a  vul- 
gar spirit  have  fallen  back  on  those  which  promised  to  be 
more  useful  and  profitable.  Many  modern  writers  have 
taken  a  similar  view :  they  commend  the  Lacedaemonian 
constitution,  and  praise  the  legislator  for  making  conquest 
and  war  his  sole  aim,  a  doctrine  which  may  be  refuted  by 
argument  and  has  long  ago  been  refuted  by  facts.  For 
most  men  desire  empire  in  the  hope  of  accumulating  the 
goods  of  fortune;  and  on  this  ground  Thibron  and  all 
those  who  have  written  about  the  Lacedaemonian  constitu- 
tion have  praised  their  legislator,  because  the  Lacedae- 
monians, by  a  training  in  hardships,  gained  great  power. 
But  surely  they  are  not  a  happy  people  now  that  their 
empire  has  passed  away,  nor  was  their  legislator  right. 
How  ridiculous  is  the  result,  if,  while  they  are  continuing 
in  the  observance  of  his  laws  and  no  one  interferes  with 
them,  they  have  lost  the  better  part  of  life.  These  writers 
further  err  about  the  sort  of  government  which  the  legis- 
lator should  approve,  for  the  government  of  freemen  is 
noble,  and  implies  more  virtue  than  despotic  government. 
Neither  is  a  city  to  be  deemed  happy  nor  a  legislator  to  be 
praised  because  he  trains  his  citizens  to  conquer  and 
obtain  dominion  over  their  neighbors,  for  there  is  great 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  39 

evil  in  this.  On  a  similar  principle  any  citizen  who  could, 
would  obviously  try  to  obtain  the  power  in  his  own  state, 
—  the  crime  which  the  Lacedaemonians  accuse  king  Pau- 
sanias  of  attempting,  although  he  had  so  great  honor 
already.  No  such  principle  and  no  law  having  this  object 
is  either  statesmanlike  or  useful  or  right.  For  the  same 
things  are  best  both  for  individuals  and  for  states,  and 
these  are  the  things  which  the  legislator  ought  to  implant 
in  the  minds  of  his  citizens.  Neither  should  men  study 
war  with  a  view  to  the  enslavement  of  those  who  do  not 
deserve  to  be  enslaved;  but  first  of  all  they  should  provide 
against  their  own  enslavement,  and  in  the  second  place 
obtain  empire  for  the  good  of  the  governed,  and  not  for  the 
sake  of  exercising  a  general  despotism,  and  in  the  third 
place  they  should  seek  to  be  masters  only  over  those  who 
deserve  to  be  slaves.  Facts,  as  well  as  arguments,  prove 
that  the  legislator  should  direct  all  his  military  and  other 
measures  to  the  provision  of  leisure  and  the  establishment 
of  peace.  For  most  of  these  military  states  are  safe  only 
while  they  are  at  war,  but  fall  when  they  have  acquired 
their  empire;  like  unused  iron  they  rust  in  time  of  peace. 
And  for  this  the  legislator  is  to  blame,  he  never  having 
taught  them  how  to  lead  the  life  of  peace. 

15.  Since  the  end  of  individuals  and  of  states  is  the 
same,  the  end  of  the  best  man  and  of  the  best  state  must 
also  be  the  same ;  it  is  therefore  evident  that  there  ought  to 
exist  in  both  of  them  the  virtues  of  leisure;  for  peace,  as 
has  often  been  repeated,  is  the  end  of  war,  and  leisure  of 
toil.  But  leisure  and  cultivation  may  be  promoted,  not  only 
by  those  virtues  which  are  practiced  in  leisure,  but  also  by 
some  of  those  which  are  useful  to  business.  For  many 
necessaries  of  life  have  to  be  supplied  before  we  can  have 
leisure.  Therefore  a  city  must  be  temperate  and  brave, 
and  able  to  endure ;  for  truly,  as  the  proverb  says,  "  There 


40 

is  no  leisure  for  slaves,"  and  those  who  cannot  face  danger 
like  men  are  the  slaves  of  any  invader.  Courage  and  endur- 
ance are  required  for  business  and  philosophy  for  leisure, 
temperance  and  justice  for  both,  more  especially  in  times 
of  peace  and  leisure,  for  war  compels  men  to  be  just  and 
temperate,  whereas  the  enjoyment  of  good  fortune  and  the 
leisure  which  comes  with  peace  tends  to  make  them  inso- 
lent. Those  then,  who  seem  to  be  the  best  off  and  to  be 
in  the  possession  of  every  good,  have  special  need  of  jus- 
tice and  temperance, —  for  example,  those  (if  such  there 
be,  as  the  poets  say)  who  dwell  in  the  Islands  of  the  Blest ; 
they  above  all  will  need  philosophy  and  temperance  and 
justice,  and  all  the  more  the  more  leisure  they  have,  living  in 
the  midst  of  abundance.  There  is  no  difficulty  in  seeing 
why  the  state  that  would  be  happy  and  good  ought  to  have 
these  virtues.  If  it  be  disgraceful  in  men  not  to  be  able 
to  use  the  goods  of  life,  it  is  peculiarly  disgraceful  not  to 
be  able  to  use  them  in  time  of  peace, —  to  show  excellent 
qualities  in  action  and  war,  and  when  they  have  peace  and 
leisure  to  be  no  better  than  slaves.  Wherefore  we  should 
not  practice  virtue  after  the  manner  of  the  Lacedaemonians. 
For  they,  while  agreeing  with  other  men  in  their  concep- 
tion of  the*  highest  goods,  differ  from  the  rest  of  mankind 
in  thinking  that  they  are  to  be  obtained  by  the  practice  of 
a  single  virtue.  And  since  these  goods  and  the  enjoyment 
of  them  are  clearly  greater  than  the  enjoyment  derived 
from  the  virtues  of  which  they  are  the  end,  we  must  now 
consider  how  and  by  what  means  they  are  to  be  attained. 

We  have  already  determined  that  nature  and  habit  and 
reason  are  required,  and  what  should  be  the  character  of 
the  citizens  has  also  been  defined  by  us.  But  we  have 
still  to  consider  whether  the  training  of  early  life  is  to  be 
that  of  reason  or  habit,  for  these  two  must  accord,  and 
when  in  accord  they  will  then  form  the  best  of  harmonies. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  41 

Reason  may  make  mistakes  and  fail  in  attaining  the  high- 
est ideal  of  life,  and  there  may  be  a  like  evil  influence  of 
habit.  Thus  much  is  clear  in  the  first  place,  that,  as  in  all 
other  things,  birth  implies  some  antecedent  principle,  and 
that  the  end  of  anything  has  a  beginning  in  some  former 
end.  Now,  in  men  reason  and  mind  are  the  end  towards 
which  nature  strives,  so  that  the  birth  and  moral  discipline 
of  the  citizens  ought  to  be  ordered  with  a  view  to  them. 
In  the  second  place,  as  the  soul  and  body  are  two,  we  see 
also  that  there  are  two  parts  of  the  soul,  the  rational  and 
the  irrational,  and  two  corresponding  states  —  reason  and 
appetite.  And  as  the  body  is  prior  in  order  of  generation 
to  the  soul,  so  the  irrational  is  prior  to  the  rational.  The 
proof  is  that  anger  and  will  and  desire  are  implanted  in 
children  from  their  very  birth,  but  reason  and  understand- 
ing are  developed  as  they  grow  older.  Wherefore,  the 
care  of  the  body  ought  to  precede  that  of  the  soul,  and  the 
training  of  the  appetitive  part  should  follow :  none  the  less 
our  care  of  it  must  be  for  the  sake  of  the  reason,  and  our 
care  of  the  body  for  the  sake  of  the  soul. 

$  9|C  $  $  $ 

17.  After  the  children  have  been  born,  the  manner  of 
rearing  them  may  be  supposed  to  have  a  great  effect  on 
their  bodily  strength.  It  would  appear  from  the  example 
of  animals,  and  of  those  nations  who  desire  to  create  the 
military  habit,  that  the  food  which  has  most  milk  in  it  is 
best  suited  to  human  beings;  but  the  less  wine  the  better^ 
if  they  would  escape  diseases.  Also  all  the  motions  to 
which  children  can  be  subjected  at  their  early  age  are  very 
useful.  But  in  order  to  preserve  their  tender  limbs  from 
distortion,  some  nations  have  had  recourse  to  mechanical 
appliances  which  straighten  their  bodies.  To  accustom 
children  to  the  cold  from  their  earliest  years  is  also  an 
excellent  practice,  which  greatly  conduces  to  health,  and 


42  ARISTOTLE 

hardens  them  for  military  service.  Hence  many  barbarians 
have  a  custom  of  plunging  their  children  at  birth  into  a  cold 
stream;  others,  like  the  Celts,  clothe  them  in  a  light  wrap- 

rper  only.  ,  For  human  nature  should  be  early  habituated 
to  endure  all  which  by  habit  it  can  be  made  to  endure ; 
but  the  process  must  be  gradual.  And  children,  from  their 
natural  warmth,  may  be  easily  trained  to  bear  cold.  Such 
care  should  attend  them  in  the  first  stage  of  life. 

The  next  period  lasts  to  the  age  of  five;  during  this  no 
demand  should  be  made  upon  the  child  for  study  or  labor, 
lest  its  growth  be  impeded;  and  there  should  be  sufficient 
motion  to  prevent  the  limbs  from  being  inactive.  This 
can  be  secured,  among  other  ways,  by  amusement,  but  the 
amusement  should  not  be  vulgar  or  tiring  or  riotous.  The 
Directors  of  Education,  as  they  are  termed,  should  be  care- 
ful what  tales  or  stories  the  children  hear,  for  the  sports 
of  children  are  designed  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  busi- 
ness of  later  life,  and  should  be  for  the  most  part  imita- 
tions of  the  occupations  which  they  will  hereafter  pursue 
in  earnest.  Those  are  wrong  who  (like  Plato)  in  the  Laws 
attempt  to  check  the  loud  crying  and  screaming  of  children, 
for  these  contribute  towards  their  growth,  and,  in  a  man- 
ner, exercise  their  bodies.  Straining  the  voice  has  an 
effect  similar  to  that  produced  by  the  retention  of  the 

i  breath  in  violent  exertions.  Besides  other  duties,  the 
Directors  of  Education  should  have  an  eye  to  their  bring- 
ing up,  and  should  take  care  that  they  are  left  as  little  as 
possible  with  slaves.  For  until  they  are  seven  years  old 
they  must  live  at  home;  and  therefore,  even  at  this  early 
age,  all  that  is  mean  and  low  should  be  banished  from 
their  sight  and  hearing.  Indeed,  there  is  nothing  which 
the  legislator  should  be  more  careful  to  drive  away  than 
indecency  of  speech ;  for  the  light  utterance  of  shameful 
words  is  akin  to  shameful  actions.  The  young  especially 


SELECTION  PROM  THE  "  POLITICS  "  43 

should  never  be  allowed  to  repeat  or  hear  anything  of  the 
sort.  A  freeman  who  is  fond  of  saying  or  doing  what  is 
forbidden,  if  he  be  too  young  as  yet  to  have  the  privilege 
of  a  place  at  the  public  tables,  should  be  disgraced  and 
beaten,  and  an  elder  person  degraded  as  his  slavish  con- 
duct deserves.  And  since  we  do  not  allow  improper  lan- 
guage, clearly  we  should  also  banish  pictures  or  tales  which 
are  indecent.  Let  the  rulers  take  care  that  there  be  no 
image  or  picture  representing  unseemly  actions,  except  in 
the  temples  of  those  Gods  at  whose  festivals  the  law  per- 
mits even  ribaldry,  and  whom  the  law  also  permits  to  be 
worshiped  by  persons  of  mature  age  on  behalf  of  them- 
selves, their  children,  and  their  wives.  But  the  legislator 
should  not  allow  youth  to  be  hearers  of  satirical  iambic 
verses  or  spectators  of  comedy  until  they  are  of  an  age  to 
sit  at  the  public  tables  and  to  drink  strong  wine;  by  that 
time  education  will  have  armed  them  against  the  evil  influ- 
ences of  such  representations. 

We  have  made  these  remarks  in  a  cursory  manner, — 
they  are  enough  for  the  present  occasion ;  but  hereafter 
we  will  return  to  the  subject  and  after  a  fuller  discussion 
determine  whether  such  liberty  should  or  should  not  be 
granted,  and  in  what  way  granted,  if  at  all.  Theodorus, 
the  tragic  actor,  was  quite  right  in  saying  that  he  would 
not  allow  any  other  actor,  not  even  if  he  were  quite  second- 
rate,  to  enter  before  himself,  because  the  spectators  grew 
fond  of  the  voices  which  they  first  heard.  And  the  same 
principle  of  association  applies  universally  to  things  as  well 
as  persons,  for  we  always  like  best  whatever  comes  first. 
And  therefore  youth  should  be  kept  strangers  to  all  that 
is  bad,  and  especially  to  things  which  suggest  vice  or  hate. 
When  the  five  years  have  passed  away,  during  the  two  fol- 
lowing years  they  must  look  on  at  the  pursuits  which  they 
are  hereafter  to  learn.  There  are  two  periods  -of  life  into 


44  ARISTOTLE 

which  education  has  to  be  divided,  from  seven  to  the  age 
of  puberty,  and  onwards  to  the  age  of  one  and  twenty. 
The  poets,  who  divide  ages  by  sevens  are  not  always  right; 
we  should  rather  adhere  to  the  divisions  actually  made  by 
nature ;  for  the  deficiencies  of  nature  are  what  art  and  edu- 
cation seek  to  fill  up. 

Let  us  then  first  inquire  if  any  regulations  are  to  be  laid 
down  about  children,  and  secondly,  whether  the  care  of 
them  should  be  the  concern  of  the  state  or  the  private  indi- 
viduals, which  latter  is  in  our  own  day  the  common  custom, 
and  in  the  third  place,  what  these  regulations  should  be. 

BOOK  VIII. 

I.  No  one  will  doubt  that  the  legislator  should  direct  his 
attention  above  all  to  the  education  of  youth,  or  that  the 
neglect  of  education  does  harm  to  states.  The  citizen 
should  be  molded  to  suit  the  form  of  government  under 
which  he  lives.  For  each  government  has  a  peculiar  char- 
acter which  originally  formed  and  which  continues  to  pre- 
serve it.  The  character  of  democracy  creates  democracy, 
and  the  character  of  oligarchy  creates  oligarchy;  and  al- 
ways the  better  the  character,  the  better  the  government. 

Now  for  the  exercise  of  any  faculty  or  art  a  previous 
training  and  habituation  are  required;  clearly  therefore  for 
the  practice  of  virtue.  And  since  the  whole  city  has  one  end, 
it  is  manifest  that  education  should  be  one  and  the  same 
for  all,  and  that  it  should  be  public,  and  not  private, —  not 
as  at  present,  when  every  one  looks  after  his  own  children 
separately,  and  gives  them  separate  instruction  of  the  sort 
which  he  thinks  best ;  the  training  in  things  which  are  of 
common  interest  should  be  the  same  for  all.  Neither  must 
we  suppose  that  any  one  of  the  citizens  belongs  to  himself, 
for  they  all  belong  to  the  state,  and  are  each  of  them  a  part 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  45 

of  the  state,  and  the  care  of  each  part  is  inseparable  from  the 
care  of  the  whole.  In  this  particular  the  Lacedaemonians 
are  to  be  praised,  for  they  take  the  greatest  pains  about 
their  children,  and  make  education  the  business  of  the  state. 

2.  That  education  should  be  regulated  by  law  and 
should  be  an  affair  of  state  is  not  to  be  denied,  but  what 
should  be  the  character  of  this  public  education,  and  how 
young  persons  should  be  educated,  are  questions  which  re- 
main to  be  considered.  For  mankind  are  by  no  means 
agreed  about  the  things  to  be  taught,  whether  we  look  to 
virtue  or  the  best  life. 

Neither  is  it  clear  whether  education  is  more  concerned 
with  intellectual  or  with  moral  virtue.  The  existing  prac- 
tice is  perplexing;  no  one  knows  on  what  principle  we 
should  proceed  —  should  the  useful  in  life,  or  should  virtue, 
or  should  the  higher  knowledge,  be  the  aim  of  our  training; 
all  three  opinions  have  been  entertained.  Again,  about  the 
means  there  is  no  agreement ;  for  different  persons,  starting 
with  different  ideas  about  the  nature  of  virtue,  naturally  dis- 
agree about  the  practice  of  it. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  children  should  be  taught  those 
useful  things  which  are  really  necessary,  but  not  all  things ; 
for  occupations  are  divided  into  liberal  and  illiberal;  and 
to  young  children  should  be  imparted  only  such  kinds  of 
knowledge  as  will  be  useful  to  them  without  vulgarizing 
them.  And  any  occupation,  art,  or  science,  which  makes  the 
body  or  soul  or  mind  of  the  freeman  less  fit  for  the  practice 
or  exercise  of  virtue,  is  vulgar ;  wherefore  we  call  those 
arts  vulgar  which  tend  to  deform  the  body,  and  likewise 
all  paid  employments,  for  they  absorb  and  degrade  the 
mind. 

There  are  also  some  liberal  arts  quite  proper  for  a  free- 
man to  acquire,  but  only  in  a  certain  degee,  and  if  he  at- 
tend to  them  too  closely,  in  order  to  attain  perfection  in 


46  ARISTOTLE 

them,  the  same  evil  effects  will  follow.  The  object  also 
which  a  man  sets  before  him  makes  a  great  difference ;  if  he 
does  or  learns  anything  for  his  own  sake  or  for  the  sake  of 
his  friends,  or  with  a  view  to  excellence,  the  action  will  not 
appear  illiberal ;  but  if  done  for  the  sake  of  others,  the  very 
same  action  will  be  thought  menial  and  servile.  The  re- 
ceived subjects  of  instruction,  as  I  have  already  remarked, 
are  partly  of  a  liberal  and  partly  of  an  illiberal  character. 

3.  The  customary  branches  of  education  are  in  number 
four;  they  are — (i)  reading  and  writing,  (2)  gymnastic 
exercises,  (3)  music,  to  which  is  sometimes  added  (4) 
drawing.  Of  these,  reading  and  writing  and  drawing  are 
regarded  as  useful  for  the  purposes  of  life  in  a  variety  of 
ways,  and  gymnastic  exercises  are  thought  to  infuse  cour- 
age. Concerning  music  a  doubt  may  be  raised  —  in  our  own 
day  most  men  cultivate  it  for  the  sake  of  pleasure,  but 
originally  it  was  included  in  education,  because  nature  her- 
self, as  has  often  been  said,  requires  that  we  should  be 
able,  not  only  to  work  well,  but  to  use  leisure  well ;  for,  as 
I  must  repeat  once  and  again,  the  first  principle  of  all  action 
is  leisure.  Both  are  required,  but  leisure  is  better  than  oc- 
cupation ;  and  therefore  the  question  must  be  asked  in  good 
earnest,  what  ought  we  to  do  when  at  leisure?  Clearly 
we  ought  not  to  be  amusing  ourselves,  for  then  amusement 
would  be  the  end  of  life.  But  if  this  is  inconceivable,  and 
yet  amid  serious  occupations  amusement  is  needed  more 
than  at  other  times  (for  he  who  is  hard  at  work  has  need 
of  relaxation,  and  amusement  gives  relaxation,  whereas 
occupation  is  always  accompanied  with  exertion  and  ef- 
fort), at  suitable  times  we  should  introduce  amusements, 
and  they  should  be  our  medicines,  for  the  emotion  which 
they  create  in  the  soul  is  a  relaxation,  and  from  the  pleasure 
we  obtain  rest.  Leisure  of  itself  gives  pleasure  and  happi- 
ness and  enjoyment  of  life,  which  are  experienced,  not  by 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  47 

the  busy  man,  but  by  those  who  have  leisure.  For  he  who 
is  occupied  has  in  view  some  end  which  he  has  not  attained ; 
but  happiness  is  an  end  which  all  men  deem  to  be  accom- 
panied with  pleasure  and  not  with  pain.  This  pleasure, 
however,  is  regarded  differently  by  different  persons,  and 
varies  according  to  the  habit  of  individuals ;  the  pleasure  of 
the  best  man  is  the  best,  and  springs  from  the  noblest 
sources. 

It  is  clear  then  that  there  are  branches  of  learning  and 
education  which  we  must  study  with  a  view  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  leisure,  and  these  are  to  be  valued  for  their  own 
sake;  whereas  those  kinds  of  knowledge  which  are  useful 
in  business  are  to  be  deemed  necessary,  and  exist  for  the 
sake  of  other  things.  And  therefore  our  fathers  admitted 
music  into  education,  not  on  the  ground  either  of  its  neces- 
sity or  utility,  for  it  is  not  necessary,  nor  indeed  useful  in  the 
same  manner  as  reading  and  writing,  which  are  useful  in 
money-making,  in  the  management  of  a  household,  in  the 
acquisition  of  knowledge  and  in  political  life,  nor  like  draw- 
ing, useful  for  a  more  correct  judgment  of  the  works  of 
artists,  nor  again  like  gymnastic,  which  gives  health  and 
strength ;  for  neither  of  these  is  to  be  gained  from  music. 
There  remains,  then,  the  use  of  music  for  intellectual  enjoy- 
ment in  leisure;  which  appears  to  have  been  the  reason  of 
its  introduction,  this  being  one  of  the  ways  in  which  it  is 
thought  that  a  freeman  should  pass  his  leisure ;  as  Homer 
says  — 

"  How  good  it  is  to  invite  men  to  the  pleasant  feast," 

and  afterwards  he  speaks  of  others  whom  he  describes  as 
inviting 

"  The  bard  who  would  delight  them  all."  * 

1  Odyssey,  XVII.  385. 


48  ARISTOTLE 

And  in  another  place  Odysseus  says  there  is  no  better  way 
of  passing  life  than  when 

"  Men's  hearts  are  merry  and  the  banqueters  in  the  hall,  sitting  in 
order,  hear  the  voice  of  the  minstrel."1 

It  is  evident,  then,  that  there  is  a  sort  of  education  in 
which  parents  should  train  their  sons,  not  as  being  useful 
or  necessary,  but  because  it  is  liberal  or  noble.  Whether 
this  is  of  one  kind  only,  or  of  more  than  one,  and  if  so, 
what  they  are,  and  how  they  are  to  be  imparted,  must  here- 
after be  determined.  Thus  much  we  are  now  in  a  position 
to  say  that  the  ancients  witness  to  us;  for  their  opinion 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  music  is  one  of  the  re- 
ceived and  traditional  branches  of  education.  Further,  it 
is  clear  that  children  should  be  instructed  in  some  useful 
things, —  for  example,  in  reading  and  writing, —  not  only 
for  their  usefulness,  but  also  because  many  other  sorts  of 
knowledge  are  acquired  through  them.  With  a  like  view 
they  may  be  taught  drawing,  not  to  prevent  their  making 
mistakes  in  their  own  purchases,  or  in  order  that  they  may, 
not  be  imposed  upon  in  the  buying  or  selling  of  articles,  but 
rather  because  it  makes  them  judges  of  the  beauty  of  the 
human  form.  To  be  seeking  always  after  the  useful  does 
not  become  free  and  exalted  souls.  Now  it  is  clear  that  in 
education  habit  must  go  before  reason,  and  the  body  before 
the  mind;  and  therefore  boys  should  be  handed  over  to 
the  trainer,  who  creates  in  them  the  proper  habit  of  body, 
and  to  the  wrestling-master,  who  teaches  them  their  exer- 
cises. 

4.  Of  these  states  which  in  our  own  day  seem  to  take 
the  greatest  care  of  children,  some  aim  at  producing  in 
them  an  athletic  habit,  but  they  only  injure  their  forms  and 

1  Odyssey,   IX.   7. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  49 

stunt  their  growth.  Although  the  Lacedaemonians  have 
not  fallen  into  this  mistake,  yet  they  brutalize  their  children 
by  laborious  exercises  which  they  think  will  make  them 
courageous.  But  in  truth,  as  we  have  often  repeated,  edu- 
cation should  not  be  exclusively  directed  to  this  or  to  any 
other  single  end.  And  even  if  we  suppose  the  Lacedae- 
monians to  be  right  in  their  end,  they  do  not  attain  it. 
For  among  barbarians  and  among  animals  courage  is  found 
associated,  not  with  the  greatest  ferocity,  but  with  a  gentle 
and  lionlike  temper.  There  are  many  races  who  are  ready 
enough  to  kill  and  eat  men,  such  as  the  Achseans  and 
Heniochi,  who  both  live  about  the  Black  Sea;  and  there 
are  other  inland  tribes,  as  bad  or  worse,  who  all  live  by 
plunder,  but  have  no  courage.  It  is  notorious  that  the 
Lacedaemonians,  while  they  were  themselves  assiduous  in 
their  laborious  drill,  were  superior  to  others,  but  now  they 
are  beaten  both  in  war  and  gymnastic  exercises.  For  their 
ancient  superiority  did  not  depend  on  their  mode  of  train- 
ing their  youth,  but  only  on  the  circumstance  that  they 
trained  them  at  a  time  when  others  did  not.  Hence  we  may 
infer  that  what  is  noble,  not  what  is  brutal,  should  have 
the  first  place;  no  wolf  or  other  wild  animal  will  face  a 
really  noble  danger;  such  dangers  are  for  the  brave  man. 
And  parents  who  devote  their  children  to  gymnastics  while 
they  neglect  their  necessary  education,  in  reality  vulgarize 
them ;  for  they  make  them  useful  to  the  state  in  one  quality 
only,  and  even  in  this  the  argument  proves  them  to  be  in- 
ferior to  others.  We  should  judge  the  Lacedaemonians  not 
from  what  they  have  been  but  from  what  they  are;  for 
now  they  have  rivals  who  compete  with  their  education ; 
formerly  they  had  none. 

It   is    an   admitted    principle,    that    gymnastic    exercises 
should  be   employed   in   education,   and   that   for  children 

PAINTER    PED.    Ess. —  4 


SO  ARISTOTLE 

they  should  be  of  a  lighter  kind,  avoiding  severe  regimen 
or  painful  toil,  lest  the  growth  of  the  body  be  impaired. 
The  evil  of  excessive  training  in  early  years  is  strikingly 
proved  by  the  example  of  the  Olympic  victors;  for  not 
more  than  two  or  three  of  them  have  gained  a  prize  both 
as  boys  and  as  men ;  their  early  training  and  severe  gym- 
nastic exercises  exhausted  their  constitutions.  When  boy- 
hood is  over,  three  years  should  be  spent  in  other  studies; 
the  period  of  life  which  follows  may  then  be  devoted  to 
hard  exercise  and  strict  regimen.  Men  ought  not  to  labor 
at  the  same  time  with  their  minds  and  with  their  bodies; 
for  the  two  kinds  of  labor  are  opposed  to  one  another, 
the  labor  of  the  body  impedes  the  mind,  and  the  labor  of 
the  mind  the  body. 

5.  Concerning  music  there  are  some  questions  which  we 
have  already  raised;  these  we  may  now  resume  and  carry 
further;  and  our  remarks  will  serve  as  a  prelude  to  this  or 
any  other  discussion  of  the  subject.  It  is  not  easy  to 
determine  the  nature  of  music,  or  why  any  one  should  have 
a  knowledge  of  it.  Shall  we  say,  for  the  sake  of  amuse- 
ment and  relaxation,  like  sleep  or  drinking,  which  are  not 
good  in  themselves,  but  are  pleasant,  and  at  the  same  time 
"  make  care  to  cease,"  as  Euripides  1  says  ?  And  therefore 
men  rank  them  with  music,  and  make  use  of  all  three, — 
sleep,  drinking,  music, —  to  which  some  add  dancing.  Or 
shall  we  argue  that  music  conduces  to  virtue,  on  the 
ground  that  it  can  form  our  minds  and  habituate  us  to  true 
pleasures  as  our  bodies  are  made  by  gymnastic  to  be  of  a 
certain  character?  Or  shall  we  say  that  it  contributes  to 
the  enjoyment  of  leisure  and  mental  cultivation,  which  is  a 
third  alternative?  Now  obviously  youth  are  not  to  be  in- 
structed with  a  view  to  their  amusement,  for  learning  is  no 
pleasure,  but  is  accompanied  with  pain.  Neither  is  intel- 

1  Bacchae,  380. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  51 

icctual  enjoyment  suitable  to  boys  of  that  age,  for  it  is  the 
end,  and  that  which  is  imperfect  cannot  attain  the  perfect 
or  end.  But  perhaps  it  may  be  said  that  boys  learn  music 
for  the  sake  of  the  amusement  which  they  will  have  when 
they  are  grown  up.  If  so,  why  should  they  learn  them- 
selves, and  not,  like  the  Persian  and  Median  kings,  enjoy 
the  pleasure  and  instruction  which  is  derived  from  hearing 
others?  (for  surely  skilled  persons  who  have  made  music 
the  business  and  profession  of  their  lives  will  be  better  per- 
formers than  those  who  practice  only  to  learn).  If  they 
must  learn  music,  on  the  same  principle  they  should  learn 
cookery,  which  is  absurd.  And  even  granting  that  music 
may  form  the  character,  the  objection  still  holds:  why 
should  we  learn  ourselves?  Why  cannot  we  attain  true 
pleasure  and  form  a  correct  judgment  from  hearing  others, 
like  the  Lacedaemonians?  For  they,  without  learning 
music,  nevertheless  can  correctly  judge,  as  they  say,  of 
good  and  bad  melodies.  Or  again,  if  music  should  be  used 
to  promote  cheerfulness  and  refined  intellectual  enjoyment, 
the  objection  still  remains  —  why  should  we  learn  our- 
selves instead  of  enjoying  the  performance  of  others?  We 
may  illustrate  what  we  are  saying  by  our  conception  of  the 
Gods ;  for  in  the  poets  Zeus  does  not  himself  sing  or  play 
on  the  lyre.  Nay,  we  call  professional  performers  vulgar; 
no  freeman  would  play  or  sing  unless  he  were  intoxicated 
or  in  jest.  But  these  matters  may  be  left  for  the  present. 

The  first  question  is  whether  music  is  or  is  not  to  be  a 
part  of  education.  Of  the  three  things  mentioned  in  our 
discussion,  which  is  it?  —  Education  or  amusement  or  intel- 
lectual enjoyment,  for  it  may  be  reckoned  under  all  three, 
and  seems  to  share  in  the  nature  of  all  of  them.  Amuse- 
ment is  for  the  sake  of  relaxation,  and  relaxation  is  of 
necessity  sweet,  for  it  is  the  remedy  of  pain  caused  by 
toil,  and  intellectual  enjoyment  is  universally  acknowledged 


52  ARISTOTLE 

to  contain  an  element  not  only  of  the  noble  but  of  the 
pleasant,  for  happiness  is  made  up  of  both.  All  men 
agree  that  music  is  one  of  the  pleasantest  things,  whether 
with  or  without  song;  as  Musaeus  says, 

"  Song  is  to  mortals  of  all  things  the  sweetest." 

Hence  and  with  good  reason  it  is  introduced  into  social 
gatherings  and  entertainments,  because  it  makes  the  hearts 
of  men  glad :  so  that  on  this  ground  alone  we  may  assume 
that  the  young  ought  to  be  trained  in  it.  For  innocent 
pleasures  are  not  only  in  harmony  with  the  perfect  end  of 
life,  but  they  also  provide  relaxation.  And  whereas  men 
rarely  attain  the  end,  but  often  rest  by  the  way  and  amuse 
themselves,  not  only  with  a  view  to  some  good,  but  also 
for  the  pleasure's  sake,  it  may  be  well  for  them  at  times 
to  find  a  refreshment  in  music.  It  sometimes  happens 
that  men  make  amusement  the  end,  for  the  end  probably 
contains  some  element  of  pleasure,  though  not  any  ordi- 
nary or  lower  pleasure;  but  they  mistake  the  lower  for 
the  higher,  and  in  seeking  for  the  one  find  the  other,  since 
every  pleasure  has  a  likeness  to  the  end  of  action.  For 
the  end  is  not  eligible,  nor  do  the  pleasures  which  we 
have  described  exist,  for  the  sake  of  any  future  good  but 
of  the  past,  that  is  to  say,  they  are  the  alleviation  of  past 
toils  and  pains.  And  we  may  infer  this  to  be  the  reason 
why  men  seek  happiness  from  common  pleasures.  But 
music  is  pursued,  not  only  as  an  alleviation  of  past  toil,  but 
also  as  providing  recreation.  And  who  can  say  whether, 
having  this  use,  it  may  not  also  have  a  nobler  one?  In 
addition  to  this  common  pleasure,  felt  and.  shared  in  by 
all  (for  the  pleasure  given  by  music  is  natural,  and  there- 
fore adapted  to  all  ages  and  characters),  may  it  not  have 
also  some  influence  over  the  character  and  the  soul?  It 
must  have  such  an  influence  if  characters  are  affected 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  53 

by  it.  And  that  they  are  so  affected  is  proved  by  the 
power  which  the  songs  of  Olympus  and  of  many  others 
exercise;  for  beyond  question  they  inspire  enthusiasm,  and 
enthusiasm  is  an  emotion  of  the  ethical  part  of  the  soul. 
Besides,  when  men  hear  imitations,  even  unaccompanied 
by  melody  or  rhythm,  their  feelings  move  in  sympathy. 
Since  then  music  is  a  pleasure,  and  virtue  consists  in 
rejoicing  and  loving  and  hating  aright,  there  is  clearly 
nothing  which  we  are  so  much  concerned  to  acquire  and 
to  cultivate  as  the  power  of  forming  right  judgments,  and  of 
taking  delight  in  good  dispositions  and  noble  actions. 
Rhythm  and  melody  supply  imitations  of  anger  and  gentle- 
ness, and  also  of  courage  and  temperance  and  of  virtues 
and  vices  in  general,  which  hardly  fall  short  of  the  actual 
affections,  as  we  know  from  our  own  experience,  for  in 
listening  to  such  strains  our  souls  undergo  a  change.  The 
habit  of  feeling  pleasure  or  pain  at  mere  representations 
is  not  far  removed  from  the  same  feeling  about  realities ; 
for  example,  if  any  one  delights  in  the  sight  of  a  statue 
for  its  beauty  only,  it  necessarily  follows  that  the  sight 
of  the  original  will  be  pleasant  to  him.  No  other  sense, 
such  as  taste  or  touch,  has  any  resemblance  to  moral  quali- 
ties; in  sight  only  there  is  a  little,  for  figures  are  to  some 
extent  of  a  moral  character,  and  (so  far)  all  participate 
in  the  feeling  about  them.  Again,  figures  and  colors  are 
not  imitations,  but  signs  of  moral  habits,  indications  which 
the  body  gives  of  states  of  feeling.  The  connection  of 
them  with  morals  is  slight,  but  in  so  far  as  there  is  any, 
young  men  should  be  taught  to  look,  not  at  the  works  of 
Pauson,  but  at  those  of  Polygnotus,  or  any  other  painter 
or  statuary  who  expresses  moral  ideas.  On  the  other  hand, 
even  in  mere  melodies  there  is  an  imitation  of  character, 
for  the  musical  modes  differ  essentially  from  one  another, 
and  those  who  hear  them  are  differently  affected  by  each. 


54  ARISTOTLE 

Some  of  them  make  men  sad  and  grave,  like  the  so-called 
Mixolydian,  others  enfeeble  the  mind,  like  the  relaxed 
harmonies,  others,  again,  produce  a  moderate  and  settled 
temper,  which  appears  to  be  the  peculiar  effect  of  the 
Dorian;  the  Phrygian  inspires  enthusiasm.  The  whole 
subject  has  been  well  treated  by  philosophical  writers  on 
this  branch  of  education,  and  they  .confirm  their  arguments 
by  facts.  The  same  principles  apply  to  rhythms:  some 
have  a  character  of  rest,  others  of  motion,  and  of  these 
latter  again,  some  have  a  more  vulgar,  others  a  nobler 
movement.  Enough  has  been  said  to  show  that  music  has 
a  power  of  forming  the  character,  and  should  therefore  be 
introduced  into  the  education  of  the  young.  The  study 
is  suited  to  the  stage  of  youth,  for  young  persons  will  not, 
if  they  can  help,  endure  anything  which  is  not  sweetened 
by  pleasure,  and  music  has  a  natural  sweetness.  There 
seems  to  be  in  us  a  sort  of  affinity  to  harmonies  and 
rhythms,  which  makes  some  philosophers  say  that  the  soul  is 
a  harmony,  others,  that  she  possesses  harmony. 

6.  And  now  we  have  to  determine  the  question  which 
has  been  already  raised,  whether  children  should  be  them- 
selves taught  to  sing  and  play  or  not.  Clearly  there  is  a 
considerable  difference  made  in  the  character  by  the  actual 
practice  of  the  art.  It  is  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  for 
those  who  do  not  perform  to  be  good  judges  of  the  per- 
formance of  others.  Besides,  children  should  have  some- 
thing to  do,  and  the  rattle  of  Archytas,  which  people  give 
to  their  children  in  order  to  amuse  them  and  prevent 
them  from  breaking  anything  in  the  house,  was  a  capital 
invention,  for  a  young  thing  cannot  be  quiet.  The  rattle 
is  a  toy  suited  to  the  infant  mind  and  (musical)  education 
is  a  rattle  or  toy  for  children  of  a  larger  growth.  We 
conclude  then  that  they  should  be  taught  music  in  such  a 
way  as  to  become  not  only  critics  but  performers. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  55 

The  question  what  is  or  is  not  suitable  for  different  ages 
may  be  easily  answered ;  nor  is  there  any  difficulty  in 
meeting  the  objection  of  those  who  say  that  the  study  of 
music  is  vulgar.  We  reply  (i)  in  the  first  place,  that  they 
who  are  to  be  judges  must  also  be  performers,  and  that  they 
should  begin  to  practice  early,  although  when  they  are 
older  they  may  be  spared  the  execution;  they  must  have 
learned  to  appreciate  what  is  good  and  to  delight  in  it, 
thanks  to  the  knowledge  which  they  acquired  in  their 
youth.  As  to  (2)  the  vulgarizing  effect  which  music  is 
supposed  to  exercise,  this  is  a  question  (of  degree),  which 
we  shall  have  no  difficulty  in  determining,  when  we  have 
considered  to  what  extent  freemen  who  are  being  trained 
to  political  virtue  should  pursue  the  art,  what  melodies  and 
what  rhythms  they  should  be  allowed  to  use,  and  what 
instruments  should  be  employed  in  teaching  them  to  play, 
for  even  the  instrument  makes  a  difference.  The  answer 
to  the  objection  turns  upon  these  distinctions;  for  it  is 
quite  possible  that  certain  methods  of  teaching  and  learn- 
ing music  do  really  have  a  degrading  effect.  It  is  evident 
then  that  the  learning  of  music  ought  not  to  impede  the 
business  of  riper  years,  or  to  degrade  the  body  or  render 
it  unfit  for  civil  or  military  duties,  whether  for  the  early 
practice  or  for  the  later  study  of  them. 

The  right  measure  will  be  attained  if  students  of  music 
stop  short  of  the  arts  which  are  practiced  in  professional 
contests,  and  do  not  seek  to  acquire  those  fantastic  marvels 
of  execution  which  are  now  the  fashion  in  such  contests,  and 
from  these  have  passed  into  education.  Let  the  young  pur- 
sue their  studies  until  they  are  able  to  feel  delight  in  noble 
melodies  and  rhythms,  and  not  merely  in  that  common 
part  of  music  in  which  every  slave  or  child  and  even  some 
animals  find  pleasure. 

From  these  principles  we  may  also  infer  what  instru- 


56  ARISTOTLE 

ments  should  be  used.  The  flute,  or  any  other  instrument 
which  requires  great  skill,  as  for  example  the  harp,  ought 
not  to  be  admitted  into  education,  but  only  such  as  will 
make  intelligent  students  of  music  or  of  the  other  parts  of 
education.  Besides,  the  flute  is  not  an  instrument  which 
has  a  good  moral  effect;  it  is  too  exciting.  The  proper 
time  for  using  it  is  when  the  performance  aims  not  at 
instruction,  but  at  the  relief  of  the  passions.  And  there  is 
a  further  objection;  the  impediment  which  the  flute  pre- 
sents to  the  use  of  the  voice  detracts  from  its  educational 
value.  The  ancients  therefore  were  right  in  forbidding 
the  flute  to  youths  and  freemen,  although  they  had  once 
allowed  it.  For  when  their  wealth  gave  them  greater 
leisure,  and  they  had  loftier  notions  of  excellence,  being 
also  elated  with  their  success,  both  before  and  after  the 
Persian  War,  with  more  zeal  than  discernment  they  pur- 
sued every  kind  of  knowledge,  and  so  they  introduced  the 
flute  into  education.  At  Lacedsemon  there  was  a  Choragus 
who  led  the  chorus  with  a  flute,  and  at  Athens  the  instru- 
ment became  so  popular  that  most  freemen  could  play 
upon  it.  The  popularity  is  shown  by  the  tablet  which 
Thrasippus  dedicated  when  he  furnished  the  chorus  to 
Ecphantides.  Later  experience  enabled  men  to  judge  what 
was  or  was  not  really  conducive  to  virtue,  and  they  rejected 
both  the  flute  and  several  other  old-fashioned  instruments, 
such  as  the  Lydian  harp,  the  many-stringed  lyre,  the 
"  heptagon,"  "  triangle,"  "  sambuca,"  and  the  like  —  which 
are  intended  only  to  give  pleasure  to  the  hearer,  and  require 
extraordinary  skill  of  hand.1  There  is  a  meaning  also  in  the 
myth  of  the  ancients,  which  tells  how  Athene  invented  the 
flute  and  then  threw  it  away.  It  was  not  a  bad  idea  of 
theirs,  that  the  Goddess  disliked  the  instrument  because  it 
made  the  face  ugly;  but  with  still  more  reason  may  we 

»Cf.  Plato,  Republic,  III.   399. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  57 

say  that  she  rejected  it  because  the  acquirement  of  flute- 
playing  contributes  nothing  to  the  mind,  since  to  Athene 
we  ascribe  both  knowledge  and  art. 

Thus  then  we  reject  the  professional  instruments  and 
also  the  professional  mode  of  education  in  music  —  and  by 
professional  we  mean  that  which  is  adopted  in  contests, 
for  in  this  the  performer  practices  the  art,  not  for  the 
sake  of  his  own  improvement,  but  in  order  to  give  pleasure, 
and  that  of  a  vulgar  sort,  to  his  hearers.  For  this  reason 
the  execution  of  such  music  is  not  the  part  of  a  freeman 
but  of  a  paid  performer,  and  the  result  is  that  the  per- 
formers are  vulgarized,  for  the  end  at  which  they  aim  is 
bad.  The  vulgarity  of  the  spectator  tends  to  lower  the 
character  of  the  music  and  therefore  of  the  performers; 
they  look  to  him  —  he  makes  them  what  they  are,  and 
fashions  even  their  bodies  by  the  movements  which  he 
expects  them  to  exhibit. 

7.  We  have  also  to  consider  rhythms  and  harmonies. 
Shall  we  use  them  all  in  education  or  make  a  distinction? 
And  shall  the  distinction  be  that  which  is  made  by  those  who 
are  engaged  in  education,  or  shall  it  be  some  other?  For 
we  see  that  music  is  produced  by  melody  and  rhythm,  and 
we  ought  to  know  what  influence  these  have  respectively 
on  education,  and  whether  we  should  prefer  excellence  in 
melody  or  excellence  in  rhythm.  But  as  the  subject  has 
been  very  well  treated  by  many  musicians  of  the  present 
day,  and  also  by  philosophers  who  have  had  considerable 
experience  of  musical  education,  to  these  we  would  refer 
the  more  exact  student  of  the  subject;  we  shall  only  speak 
of  it  now  after  the  manner  of  the  legislator,  having  regard 
to  general  principles. 

We  accept  the  division  of  melodies  proposed  by  certain 
philosophers  into  ethical  melodies,  melodies  of  action,  and 
passionate  or  inspiring  melodies,  each  having,  as  they  say, 


58  ARISTOTLE 

a  mode  or  harmony  corresponding  to  it.  But  we  maintain 
further  that  music  should  be  studied,  not  for  the  sake  of 
one,  but  of  many  benefits,  that  is  to  say,  with  a  view  to 
(i)  education,  (2)  purification  (the  word  "purification" 
we  use  at  present  without  explanation,  but  when  hereafter 
we  speak  of  poetry,  we  will  treat  the  subject  with  more  pre- 
cision) ;  music  may  also  serve  (3)  for  intellectual  enjoy- 
ment, for  relaxation  and  for  recreation  after  exertion.  It  is 
clear,  therefore,  that  all  the  harmonies  must  be  employed  by 
us,  but  not  all  of  them  in  the  same  manner.  In  education 
ethical  melodies  are  to  be  preferred,  but  we  may  listen  to 
the  melodies  of  action  and  passion  when  they  are  performed 
by  others.  For  feelings  such  as  pity  and  fear,  or,  again, 
enthusiasm,  exist  very  strongly  in  some  souls,  and  have 
more  or  less  influence  over  all.  Some  persons  fall  into  a 
religious  frenzy,  whom  we  see  disenthralled  by  the  use  of 
mystic  melodies,  which  bring  healing  and  purification  to 
the  soul.  Those  who  are  influenced  by  pity  or  fear  and 
every  emotional  nature  have  a  like  experience,  others  in 
their  degree  are  stirred  by  something  which  specially  affects 
them,  and  all  are  in  a  manner  purified  and  their  souls 
lightened  and  delighted.  The  melodies  of  purification  like- 
wise give  an  innocent  pleasure  to  mankind.  Such  are  the 
harmonies  and  the  melodies  in  which  those  who  perform 
music  at  the  theater  should  be  invited  to  compete.  But 
since  the  spectators  are  of  two  kinds  —  the  one  free  and 
educated,  the  other  a  vulgar  crowd  composed  of  mechanics, 
laborers,  and  the  like  —  there  ought  to  be  contests  and  exhi- 
bitions instituted  for  the  relaxation  of  the  second  class  also. 
And  the  melodies  will  correspond  to  their ^minds  ;  for  as  their 
minds  are  perverted  from  the  natural  state,  so  there  are 
exaggerated  and  corrupted  harmonies  which  are  in  like 
manner  a  perversion.  A  man  receives  pleasure  from  what 
is  natural  to  him,  and  therefore  professional  musicians  may 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "POLITICS"  59 

be  allowed  to  practice  this  lower  sort  of  music  before  an 
audience  of  a  lower  type.  But,  for  the  purposes  of  educa- 
tion, as  I  have  already  said,  those  modes  and  melodies 
should  be  employed  which  are  ethical,  such  as  the  Dorian ; 
though  we  may  include  any  others  which  are  approved  by 
philosophers  who  have  had  a  musical  education.  The 
Socrates  of  the  Republic  1  is  wrong  in  retaining  only  the 
Phrygian  mode  along  with  the  Dorian,  and  the  more  so 
because  he  rejects  the  flute;  for  the  Phrygian  is  to  the 
modes  what  the  flute  is  to  musical  instruments  —  both  of 
them  are  exciting  and  emotional.  Poetry  proves  this,  for 
Bacchic  frenzy  and  all  similar  emotions  are  most  suitably 
expressed  by  the  flute,  and  are  better  set  to  the  Phrygian 
than  to  any  other  harmony.  The  dithyramb,  for  example, 
is  acknowledged  to  be  Phrygian,  a  fact  of  which  the  con- 
noisseurs of  music  offer  many  proofs,  saying,  among  other 
things,  that  Philoxenus,  having  attempted  to  compose  his 
Tales  as  a  dithyramb  in  the  Dorian  mode,  found  it  impos- 
sible, and  fell  back  into  the  more  appropriate  Phrygian. 
All  men  agree  that  the  Dorian  music  is  the  gravest  and 
manliest.  And  whereas  we  say  that  the  extremes  should 
be  avoided  and  the  mean  followed,  and  whereas  the  Dorian 
is  a  mean  between  the  other  harmonies  (the  Phrygian  and 
the  Lydian),  it  is  evident  that  our  youth  should  be  taught 
the  Dorian  music. 

Two  principles  have  to  be  kept  in  view,  what  is  possible, 
what  is  becoming:  at  these  every  man  ought  to  aim.  But 
even  these  are  relative  to  age;  the  old,  who  have  lost  their 
powers,  cannot  very  well  sing  the  severe  melodies,  and 
nature  herself  seems  to  suggest  that  their  songs  should  be 
of  the  more  relaxed  kind.  Wherefore  the  musicians  like- 
wise blame  Socrates,  and  with  justice,  for  rejecting  the 
relaxed  harmonies  in  education  under  the  idea  that  they 

1  Cf.   Plato,  Republic,   III.   399. 


60  ARISTOTLE 

are  intoxicating,  not  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  intoxication 
(for  wine  rather  tends  to  excite  men),  but  because  they 
have  no  strength  in  them.  And  so  with  a  view  to  a  time 
of  life  when  men  begin  to  grow  old,  they  ought  to  practice 
the  gentler  harmonies  and  melodies  as  well  as  the  others. 
And  if  there  be  any  harmony,  such  as  the  Lydian  above 
all  others  appears  to  be,  which  is  suited  to  children  of 
tender  age,  and  possesses  the  elements  both  of  order  and 
of  education,  clearly  (we  ought  to  use  it,  for)  education 
should  be  based  upon  three  principles — >the  mean,  the 
possible,  the  becoming,  these  three. 


III.    XENOPHON. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Xenophon,  the  Greek  historian  and  essayist,  was  born 
at  Athens  about  430  B.  C.  Early  in  life  he  came  under 
the  influence  of  Socrates,  to  whom,  in  the  "  Memorabilia," 
he  pays  an  affectionate  tribute.  This  work  shows  that  it 
was  the  moral  and  practical  teachings  of  the  philosopher, 
rather  than  his  metaphysical  speculations,  that  made  a  deep 
impression  on  the  disciple. 

In  401  B.  C.  Xenophon  joined  the  expedition  of  the 
younger  Cyrus  against  his  brother  Artaxerxes  II.  of  Persia. 
After  the  battle  of  Cunaxa,  in  which  Cyrus,  was  killed, 
Xenophon  directed  the  retreat  of  the  Greeks,  of  which  he 
has  left  a  detailed  account  in  his  "  Anabasis."  It  was  chiefly 
due  to  his  courage  and  skill  that  the  Grecian  force,  after 
numerous  dangers  and  hardships,  finally  made  its  escape. 

After  his  return  to  Greece,  Xenophon  made  his  home  in 
Sparta.  He  admired  the  institutions  of  that  country,  and 
had  his  children  educated  under  the  Spartan  system. 
While  living  in  retirement  near  Olympia  he  wrote  his  prin- 
cipal works.  His  "  Cyropsedia,"  from  which  the  first  of  the 
following  selections  is  taken,  is  a  historical  romance  rather 
than  sober  history.  Xenophon  uses  the  Persian  king  to 
illustrate  his  own  views  of  education,  which  do  not  essen- 
tially differ  from  the  system  of  Sparta. 

In  his  "  Economics,"  which  treats  of  the  management  of 
the  household  and  farm,  Xenophon  presents  a  pleasing 
picture  of  the  Greek  wife  and  of  her  domestic  duties.  Un- 

61 


62  XENOPHON 

like  his  "  Cyropsedia,"  it  is  Athenian  in  spirit,  and  limits  the 
sphere  of  woman  to  domestic  duties.  It  is  from  this  work, 
which  clearly  brings  before  us  the  education  of  Athenian 
women,  that  the  second  selection  is  taken. 

SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  CYROP-ffiDIA  "  OF 
XENOPHON. 

CHAPTER   II. 

I.  Cyrus  is  said  to  have  had  for  his  father  Cambyses, 
king  of  the  Persians.  Cambyses  was  of  the  race  of  Per- 
seidae,  who  were  so  called-  from  Perseus.  It  is  agreed  that 
he  was  born  of  a  mother  named  Mandane ;  and  Ma'ndane 
was  the  daughter  of  Astyages,  king  of  the  Medes.  Cyrus 
is  described,  and  is  still  celebrated  by  the  Barbarians,  as 
having  been  most  handsome  in  person,  most  humane  in 
disposition,  most  eager  for  knowledge,  and  most  ambitious 
of  honor;  so  that  he  would  undergo  any  labor  and  face 
any  danger  for  the  sake  of  obtaining  praise.  2.  Such  is 
the  constitution  of  mind  and  body  that  he  is  recorded  to 
have  had;  and  he  was  educated  in  conformity  with  the 
laws  of  the  Persians. 

These  laws  seem  to  begin  with  a  provident  care  for  the 
common  good;  not  where  they  begin  in  most  other  gov- 
ernments ;  for  most  governments,  leaving  each  individual 
to  educate  his  children  as  he  pleases,  and  the  advanced  in 
age  to  live  as  they  please,  enjoin  their  people  not  to  steal, 
not  to  plunder,  not  to  enter  a  house  by  violence,  not  to 
strike  any  one  whom  it  is  wrong  to  strike,  not  to  be  adul- 
terous, not  to  disobey  the  magistrates,  and  other  such 
things  in  like  manner;  and,  if  people  transgress  any  of 
these  precepts,  they  impose  punishments  upon  them. 
3.  But  the  Persian  laws,  by  anticipation,  are  careful  to 
provide  from  the  beginning,  that  their  citizens  shall  not 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "CYROPJEDIA  "  63 

be  such  as  to  be  inclined  to  any  action  that  is  bad  and 
mean.  This  care  they  take  in  the  following  manner. 
They  have  an  Agora,  called  the  Free,  where  the  king's 
palace  and  other  houses  for  magistrates  are  built ;  all  things 
for  sale,  and  the  dealers  in  them,  their  cries  and  coarse- 
nesses, are  banished  from  hence  to  some  other  place ;  that  the 
disorder  of  these  may  not  interfere  with  the  regularity  of 
those  who  are  under  instruction.  4.  This  Agora,  round 
the  public  courts,  is  divided  into  four  parts ;  of  these,  one  is 
for  the  boys,  one  for  the  youth,  one  for  the  full-grown 
men,  and  one  for  those  who  are  beyond  the  years  for  mili- 
tary service.  Each  of  these  divisions,  according  to  the 
law,  attend  in  their  several  quarters ;  the  boys  and  full- 
grown  men  as  soon  as  it  is  day ;  the  elders  when  they  think 
convenient,  except  upon  appointed  days,  when  they  are 
obliged  to  be  present.  The  youth  pass  the  night  round 
the  courts,  in  their  light  arms,  except  such  as  are  married ; 
for  these  are  not  required  to  do  so,  unless  orders  have  been 
previously  given  them;  nor  is  it  becoming  in  them  to  be 
often  absent.  5.  Over  each  of  the  classes  there  are  twelve 
presidents,  for  there  are  twelve  distinct  tribes  of  the  Per- 
sians. Those  over  the  boys  are  chosen  from  amongst  the 
elders,  and  are  such  as  are  thought  likely  to  make  them  the 
best  boys;  those  over  the  youth  are  chosen  from  amongst 
the  full-grown  men,  and  are  such  as  are  thought  likely 
to  make  them  the  best  youth ;  and  over  the  full-grown 
men,  such  as  are  thought  likely  to  render  them  the  most 
expert  in  performing  their  appointed  duties,  and  in  exe- 
cuting the  orders  given  by  the  chief  magistrate.  There  are 
likewise  chosen  presidents  over  the  elders,  who  take  care 
that  these  also  perform  their  duties.  What  it  is  prescribed 
to  each  age  to  do,  we  shall  relate,  that  it  may  be  the  better 
understood  how  the  Persians  take  precautions  that  excellent 
citizens  may  be  produced. 


64  XENOPHON 

6.  The  boys  attending  the  public  schools,  pass  their 
time  in  learning  justice;  and  say  that  they  go  for  this 
purpose,  as  those  with  us  say  who  go  to  learn  to  read. 
Their  presidents  spend  the  most  part  of  the  day  in  dis- 
pensing justice  amongst  them;  for  there  are  among  the 
boys,  as  among  the  men,  accusations  for  theft,  robbery, 
violence,  deceit,  calumny,  and  other  such  things  as  natu- 
rally occur;  and  such  as  they  convict  of  doing  wrong,  in 
any  of  these  respects,  they  punish.  7.  They  punish  like- 
wise, such  as  they  find  guilty  of  false  accusation ;  they 
appeal  to  justice  also  in  the  case  of  a  crime  for  which  men 
hate  one  another  excessively,  but  for  which  they  never  go 
to  law,  that  is,  ingratitude ;  and  whomsoever  they  find  able 
to  return  a  benefit,  and  not  returning  it,  they  punish  severely. 
For  they  think  that  the  ungrateful  are  careless  with  regard 
to  the  gods,  their  parents,  their  country,  and  their  friends ; 
and  upon  ingratitude  seems  closely  to  follow  shamelessness, 
which  appears  to  be  the  principal  conductor  of  mankind 
into  all  that  is  dishonorable. 

8.  They  also  teach  the  boys  self-control ;  and  it  contrib- 
utes much  towards  their  learning  to  control  themselves, 
that  they  see  every  day  their  elders  behaving  themselves 
with  discretion.  They  teach  them  also  to  obey  their 
officers ;  and  it  contributes  much  to  this  end,  that  they  see 
their  elders  constantly  obedient  to  their  officers.  They 
teach  them  temperance  with  respect  to  eating  and  drink- 
ing; and  it  contributes  much  to  this  object,  that  they  see 
that  their  elders  do  not  quit  their  stations  to  satisfy  their 
appetites,  until  their  officers  dismiss  them,  and  that  the 
boys  themselves  do  not  eat  with  their  mothers,  but  with 
their  teachers,  and  when  the  officers  give  the  signal.  They 
bring  from  home  with  them  bread,  and  a  sort  of  cresses 
to  eat  with  it;  and  a  cup  to  drink  from,  that,  if  any  are 
thirsty,  they  may  take  water  from  the  river.  They  learn, 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "CYROP2EDIA  "  65 

besides,  to  shoot  with  the  bow,  and  to  throw  the  javelin. 
These  exercises  the  boys  practice  until  they  are  sixteen  or 
seventeen  years  of  age,  when  they  enter  the  class  of  young 
men. 

9.  The  young  men  pass  their  time  thus :  For  ten  years 
after  they  go  from  the  class  of  boys,  they  pass  the  night 
round  the  courts,  as  I  have  said  before,  both  for  the  secur- 
ity and  guard  of  the  city,  and  for  the  sake  of  practicing 
self-restraint ;  for  this  age  seems  most  to  need  superintend- 
ence. During  the  day  they  keep  themselves  at  the  com- 
mand of  their  officers,  in  case  they  want  them  for  any 
public  service;  and  when  it  is  necessary  they  all  wait  at 
the  courts.  But  whenever  the  king  goes  out  to  hunt,  he 
takes  half  the  guard  out  with  him,  and  leaves  half  of  it 
behind ;  and  this  he  does  several  times  every  month.  Those 
that  go  out  must  have  their  bow,  with  a  quiver,  a  bill  or 
small  sword  in  a  sheath,  a  light  shield,  and  two  javelins, 
one  to  throw,  and  the  other,  if  necessary,  to  use  at  hand. 
10.  They  attend  to  hunting  as  a  matter  of  public  interest, 
and  the  king,  as  in  war,  is  their  leader,  hunting  himself, 
and  seeing  that  others  do  so ;  because  it  seems  to  them  to  be 
the  most  efficient  exercise  for  all  such  things  as  relate  to 
war.  It  accustoms  them  to  rise  early  in  the  morning,  and 
to  bear  heat  and  cold ;  it  exercises  them  in  long  marches, 
and  in  running ;  it  necessitates  them  to  use  their  bow  against 
the  beast  that  they  hunt,  and  to  throw  their  javelin,  wher- 
ever he  falls  in  their  way,  their  courage  must,  of  necessity, 
be  often  sharpened  in  the  hunt,  when  any  of  the  strong 
and  vigorous  beasts  present  themselves ;  for  they  must  come 
to  blows  with  the  animal  if  he  comes  up  to  them,  and  must 
be  upon  their  guard  as  he  approaches;  so  that  it  is  not 
easy  to  find  what  single  thing,  of  all  that  is  practiced  in 
war,  is  not  to  be  found  in  hunting,  u.  They  go  out  to 
hunt  provided  with  a  dinner,  larger,  indeed,  as  is  but  right, 

PAINTER    FED.    Ess. —  5 


66  XENOPHON 

than  that  of  the  boys,  but  in  other  respects  the  same;  and 
during  the  hunt  perhaps  they  may  not  eat  it;  but  if  it  be 
necessary  to  remain  on  the  ground  to  watch  for  the  beast, 
or  if  for  any  other  reason  they  wish  to  spend  more  time 
in  the  hunt,  they  sup  upon  this  dinner,  and  hunt  again  the 
next  day  till  supper  time,  and  reckon  these  two  days  as  but 
one,  because  they  eat  the  food  of  but  one  day.  This  absti- 
nence they  practice  to  accustom  themselves  to  it,  so  that, 
should  it  be  necessary  in  war,  they  may  be  able  to  observe 
it.  Those  of  this  age  have  what  they  catch  for  meat  with 
their  bread;  or,  if  they  catch  nothing,  their  cresses.  And, 
if  any  one  think  that  they  eat  without  pleasure  when  they 
have  cresses  only  with  their  bread,  and  that  they  drink 
without  pleasure  when  they  drink  only  water,  let  him  rec- 
ollect how  pleasant  barley  cake  or  bread  is  to  eat  to  one 
who  is  hungry,  and  how  pleasant  water  is  to  drink  to  one 
who  is  thirsty. 

12.  The  parties  that  remain  at  home  pass  their  time  in 
practicing  what  they  learned  while  they  were  boys,  as  well 
as  other  things,  such  as  using  the  bow  and  throwing  the 
javelin ;  and  they  pursue  these  exercises  with  mutual  emu- 
lation, as  there  are  public  contests  in  their  several  accom- 
plishments, and  prizes  offered;  and  in  whichsoever  of  the 
tribes  there  are  found  the  most  who  excel  in  skill,  in 
courage,  and  in  obedience,  the  citizens  applaud  and  honor, 
not  only  the  present  commander  of  them,  but  also  the 
person  who  had  the  instruction  of  them  when  they  were 
boys.  The  magistrates  likewise  make  use  of  the  youth  that 
remain  at  home,  if  they  want  them,  to  keep  guard  upon 
any  occasion,  to  search  for  malefactors,  to  pursue  robbers, 
or  for  any  other  business  that  requires  strength  and  agility. 
In  these  occupations  the  youth  are  exercised. 

But  when  they  have  completed  their  ten  years,  they  enter 
into  the  class  of  full-grown  men ;  13.  who,  from  the  time 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "CYROPJEDIA  "  67 

they  leave  the  class  of  youth,  pass  five  and  twenty  years 
in  the  following  manner.  First,  like  the  youth,  they  keep 
themselves  at  the  command  of  the  magistrates,  that  they 
may  use  their  services,  if  it  should  be  necessary,  for  the 
public  good,  in  whatever  employments  require  the  exertions 
of  such  as  have  discretion,  and  are  yet  in  vigor.  If  it  be  nec- 
essary to  undertake  any  military  expedition,  they  who  are 
in  this  state  of  discipline  do  not  march  out  with  bows  and 
javelins,  but  with  what  are  called  arms  for  close  fight,  a 
corslet  over  the  breast,  a  shield  in  the  left  hand,  such  as 
that  with  which  the  Persians  are  painted,  and,  in  the  right, 
a  large  sword  or  bill.  All  the  magistrates  are  chosen  from 
this  class,  except  the  teachers  of  the  boys ;  and,  when  they 
have  completed  five  and  twenty  years  in  this  class,  they  will 
then  be  something  more  than  fifty  years  of  age,  and  pass  into 
the  class  of  such  as  are  elders,  and  are  so  called.  14.  These 
elders  no  longer  go  on  any  military  service  abroad,  but, 
remaining  at  home,  have  the  dispensation  of  public  and 
private  justice;  they  take  cognizance  of  matters  of  life  and 
death,  and  have  the  choice  of  all  magistrates ;  and,  if  any 
of  the  youth  or  full-grown  men  fail  in  anything  enjoined  by 
the  laws,  the  several  magistrates  of  the  tribes,  or  any  one 
that  chooses,  gives  information  of  it,  when  the  elders  hear  the 
cause,  and  pass  sentence  upon  it ;  and  the  person  that  is 
condemned  remains  infamous  for  the  rest  of  his  life. 

15.  But  that  the  whole  Persian  form  of  government 
may  be  shown  more  clearly,  I  shall  go  back  a  little;  for, 
from  what  has  been  already  said,  it  may  now  be  set  forth 
in  a  very  few  words.  The  Persians  are  said  to  be  in  num- 
ber about  a  hundred  and  twenty  thousand;  of  these  no 
individual  is  excluded  by  law  from  honors  and  magistracies, 
but  all  are  at  liberty  to  send  their  boys  to  the  public 
schools  of  justice.  Those  who  are  able  to  maintain  their 
children  without  putting  them  to  work,  send  them  to  these 


68  XENOPHON 

schools;  they  who  are  unable,  do  not  send  them.  Those 
who  are  thus  educated  under  the  public  teachers,  are  at 
liberty  to  pass  their  youth  in  the  class  of  young  men; 
they  who  are  not  so  educated,  have  not  that  liberty.  They 
who  pass  their  term  among  the  young  men,  discharging 
all  things  enjoined  by  the  law,  are  allowed  to  be  incorpo- 
rated amongst  the  full-grown  men,  and  to  partake  of  all 
honors  and  magistracies;  but  they  who  do  not  complete 
their  course  in  the  class  of  youth,  do  not  pass  into  that  of 
full-grown  men.  Those  who  make  their  progress  through 
the  order  of  full-grown  men  unexceptionably,  are  then 
enrolled  among  the  elders ;  so  that  the  order  of  elders 
stands  composed  of  men  who  have  pursued  their  course 
through  all  things  good  and  excellent.  Such  is  the  form 
of  government  among  the  Persians,  and  such  the  care 
bestowed  upon  it,  by  the  observance  of  which  they  think 
that  they  become  the  best  citizens.  16.  .  .  . 

These  particulars  I  had  to  state  concerning  the  Persians 
in  general.  I  will  now  relate  the  actions  of  Cyrus,  upon 
whose  account  this  narrative  was  undertaken,  beginning 
from  his  boyhood. 

SELECTION   FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  OF 
XENOPHON. 

SPEAKERS. 
SOCRATES  AND  ISCHOMACHUS. 

CHAPTER  VII.      THE  EDUCATION  OF  WOMEN. 

4.  "  But,"  said  I,  "  Ischomachus,  I  would  very  gladly  be 
permitted  to  ask  you  whether  you  instructed  your  wife 
yourself,  so  that  she  might  be  qualified  as  she  ought  to  be, 
or  whether,  when  you  received  her  from  her  father  and 
mother,  she  was  possessed  of  sufficient  knowledge  to  manage 


SELECTION  FROM   THE  "  ECONOMICS  "  69 

what  belongs  to  her."  5.  "  And  how,  my  dear  Socrates/' 
said  he,  "  could  she  have  had  sufficient  knowledge  when 
I  took  her,  since  she  came  to  my  house  when  she  was  not 
fifteen  years  old,  and  had  spent  the  preceding  part  of  her 
life  under  the  strictest  restraint,  in  order  that  she  might  see 
as  little,  hear  as  little,  and  ask  as  few  questions  as  possible  ? 

6.  Does  it  not  appear  to  you  to  be  quite  sufficient,  if  she  did 
but  know,  when  she  came,  how  to  take  wool  and  make  a 
garment,  and  had  seen  how  to  apportion  the  tasks  of  spin- 
ning among  the  maid  servants  ?    For  as  to  what  concerns  the 
appetite,  Socrates,"  added  he,  "  which  seems  to  me  a  most 
important  part  of  instruction  both   for  a  man  and  for  a 
woman,    she    came    to    me    extremely    well    instructed." 

7.  "  But  as   to  other  things,   Ischomachus,"   said  I,  "  did 
you   yourself   instruct   your   wife,    so   that   she   should   be 
qualified  to  attend  to  the  affairs  belonging  to  her?  "     "  Not, 
indeed,"  replied  Ischomachus,  "  until  I  had  offered  sacrifice, 
and  prayed  that  it  might  be  my  fortune  to  teach,  and  hers 
to  learn,  what  would  be  best  for  both  of  us."     8.  "  Did  your 
wife,  then,"  said  I,  "  join  with  you  in  offering  sacrifice,  and 
in  praying  for  these  blessings  ?  "     "  Certainly,"  answered 
Ischomachus,  "  and  she  made  many  vows  to  the  gods  that 
she  would  be  such  as  she  ought  to  be,  and  showed  plainly 
that  she  was  not  likely  to  disregard  what  was  taught  her." 
9.  "  In  the  name  of  the  gods,  Ischomachus,  tell  me,"  said 
I,   "  what  you  began  to  teach  her  first ;  for  I  shall  have 
more  pleasure  in  hearing  you  give  this  account,  than  if  you 
were  to  give  me  a  description  of  the  finest  gymnastic  or 
equestrian  games."     10.  "  Well,  then,   Socrates,"   returned 
Ischomachus,  "  when  she  grew  familiarized  and  domesti- 
cated with   me,   so  that  we   conversed   freely  together,   I 
began  to  question  her  in  some  such  way  as  this :     '  Tell  me, 
my  dear  wife,  have  you  ever  considered  with  what  view  I 
married  you,  and  with  what  object  your  parents  gave  you 


76  XENOPHON 

to  me?  ii.  For  that  there  was  no  want  of  other  persons 
with  whom  we  might  have  shared  our  respective  beds  must, 
I  am  sure,  be  evident  to  you  as  well  as  to  me.  But  when  I 
considered  for  myself,  and  your  parents  for  you,  whom  we 
might  select  as  the  best  partner  for  a  house  and  children, 
I  preferred  you,  and  your  parents,  as  it  appears,  preferred 
me,  out  of  those  who  were  possible  objects  of  choice. 
12.  If,  then,  the  gods  should  ever  grant  children  to  be 
born  to  us,  we  shall  then  consult  together,  with  regard  to 
them,  how  we  may  bring  them  up  as  well  as  possible;  for 
it  will  be  a  common  advantage  to  both  of  us  to  find  them 
of  the  utmost  service  as  supporters  and  maintainers  of  our 
old  age.  13.  At  present,  however,  this  is  our  common 
household;  for  I  deposit  all  that  I  have  as  in  common 
between  us,  and  you  put  everything  that  you  have  brought 
into  our  common  stock.  Nor  is  it  necessary  to  consider 
which  of  the  two  has  contributed  the  greater  share;  but 
we  ought  to  feel  assured  that  whichsoever  of  us  is  the 
better  manager  of  our  common  fortune  will  give  the  more 
valuable  service/  14.  To  these  remarks,  Socrates,  my 
wife  replied,  '  In  what  respect  could  I  cooperate  with  you? 
What  power  have  I?  Everything  lies  with  you.  My 
duty,  my  mother  told  me,  was  to  conduct  myself  dis- 
creetly.' 15.  '  Yes,  by  Jupiter,  my  dear  wife,'  replied  I, 
'  and  my  father  told  me  the  same.  But  it  is  the  part  of 
discreet  people,  as  well  husbands  as  wives,  to  act  in  such 
a  manner  that  their  property  may  be  in  the  best  possible 
condition,  and  that  as  large  additions  as  possible  may  be 
made  to  it  by  honorable  and  just  means.'  16.  *  And 
what  do  you  see,'  said  my  wife,  '  that  I  can  do  to  assist 
in  increasing  our  property  ? '  '  Endeavor  by  all  means,' 
answered  I,  '  to  do  in  the  best  possible  manner  those 
duties  which  the  gods  have  qualified  you  to  do,  and  which 
custom  approves.'  17.  'And  what  are  they?'  asked  she. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  71 

'  I  consider,'  replied  I,  '  that  they  are  duties  of  no  small 
importance,  unless  indeed  the  queen  bee  in  a  hive  is  ap- 
pointed for  purposes  of  small  importance.  18.  For  to 
me/ "  continued  he,  " '  the  gods,  my  dear  wife,'  said  I, 
'  seem  certainly  to  have  united  that  pair  of  beings,  which 
is  called  male  and  female,  with  the  greatest  judgment,  that 
they  may  be  in  the  highest  degree  serviceable  to  each  other 
in  their  connection.  19.  In  the  first  place,  the  pair  are 
brought  together  to  produce  offspring,  that  the  races  of 
animals  may  not  become  extinct;  and  to  human  beings,  at 
least,  it  is  granted  to  have  supporters  for  their  old  age 
from  this  union.  20.  For  human  beings,  also,  their  mode 
of  life  is  not,  like  that  of  cattle,  in  the  open  air;  but  they 
have  need,  we  see,  of  houses.  It  is  accordingly  necessary 
for  those  who  would  have  something  to  bring  into  their 
houses  to  have  people  to  perform  the  requisite  employ- 
ments in  the  open  air;  for  tilling,  and  sowing,  and  plant- 
ing, and  pasturage  are  all  employments  for  the  open  air; 
and  from  these  employments  the  necessaries  of  life  are 
procured.  21.  But  when  these  necessaries  have  been 
brought  into  the  house,  there  is  need  of  some  one  to  take 
care  of  them,  and  to  do  whatever  duties  require  to  be  done 
under  shelter.  The  rearing  of  young  children  also  demands 
shelter,  as  well  as  the  preparation  of  food  from  the  fruits  of 
the  earth,  and  the  making  of  clothes  from  wool.  22.  And 
as  both  these  sorts  of  employments,  alike  those  without 
doors,  and  those  within,  require  labor  and  care,  the  gods, 
as  it  seems  to  me,'  said  I,  '  have  plainly  adapted  the  nature 
of  the  woman  for  works  and  duties  within  doors,  and  that 
of  the  man  for  works  and  duties  without  doors.  23.  For 
the  divinity  has  fitted  the  body  and  mind  of  the  man  to  be 
better  able  to  bear  cold,  and  heat,  and  traveling,  and  mili- 
tary exercises,  so  that  he  has  imposed  upon  him  the  work 
without  doors;  and  by  having  formed  the  body  of  the 


72  XENOPHON 

woman  to  be  less  able  to  bear  such  exertions,  he  appears 
to  me  to  have  laid  upon  her,'  said  I,  '  the  duties  within 
doors.  24.  But  knowing  that  he  had  given  the  woman 
by  nature,  and  laid  upon  her,  the  office  of  rearing  young 
children,  he  has  also  bestowed  upon  her  a  greater  portion 
of  love  for  her  newly-born  offspring  than  on  the  man. 
25.  Since,  too,  the  divinity  has  laid  upon  the  woman  the 
duty  of  guarding  what  is  brought  into  the  house,  he, 
knowing  that  the  mind,  by  being  timid,  is  not  less  adapted 
for  guarding,  has  given  a  larger  share  of  timidity  to  the 
woman  than  to  the  man ;  and  knowing  also  that  if  any  one 
injures  him  who  is  engaged  in  the  occupations  without,  he 
must  defend  himself,  he  has  on  that  account  given  a 
greater  portion  of  boldness  to  the  man.  26.  But  as  it  is 
necessary  for  both  alike  to  give  and  to  receive,  he  has 
bestowed  memory  and  the  power  of  attention  upon  both 
impartially,  so  that  you  cannot  distinguish  whether  the 
female  or  the  male  has  the  larger  portion  of  them. 
27.  The  power  of  being  temperate  also  in  what  is  neces- 
sary he  has  conferred  in  equal  measure  upon  both,  and 
has  allowed  that  whichsoever  of  the  two  is  superior  in 
this  virtue,  whether  the  man  or  the  woman,  shall  receive 
a  greater  portion  of  the  benefit  arising  from  it.  28.  But 
as  the  nature  of  both  is  not  fully  adapted  for  all  these 
requirements,  they  in  consequence  stand  in  greater  need 
of  aid  from  one  another,  and  the  pair  are  of  greater  service 
to  each  other,  when  the  one  is  able  to  do  those  things  in 
which  the  other  is  deficient.  29.  As  we  know,  then,  my 
dear  wife,'  continued  I,  'what  is  appointed  to  each  of  us 
by  Providence,  it  is  incumbent  on  us  to  discharge  as  well 
as  we  can  that  which  each  of  us  has  to  do." 

30.  "  'The  law,  too,'  I  told  her,"  he  proceeded,  "  '  gives 
its  approbation  to  these  arrangements,  by  uniting  the  man 
and  the  woman ;  and  as  the  divinity  has  made  them  part- 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  73 

ners,  as  it  were,  in  their  offspring,  so  the  law  ordains  them 
to  be  sharers  in  household  affairs.  The  law  also  shows 
that  those  things  are  more  becoming  to  each  which  the 
divinity  has  qualified  each  to  do  with  greater  facility ;  for 
it  is  more  becoming  for  the  woman  to  stay  within  doors 
than  to  roam  abroad,  but  to  the  man  it  is  less  creditable  to 
remain  at  home  than  to  attend  to  things  out  of  doors. 
31.  And  if  any  one  acts  contrary  to  what  the  divinity  has 
fitted  him  to  do,  he  will,  while  he  violates  the  order  of 
things,  possibly  not  escape  the  notice  of  the  gods,  and  will 
pay  the  penalty  whether  of  neglecting  his  own  duties  or  of 
interfering  with  those  of  his  wife.  32.  The  queen  of  the 
bees,'  I  added,  '  appears  to  me  to  discharge  such  duties  as 
are  appointed  to  her  by  the  divinity.'  '  And  what 
duties,'  inquired  my  wife,  '  has  the  queen  bee  to  perform, 
that  she  should  be  made  an  example  for  the  business 
which  I  have  to  do  ? '  33.  '  She,  remaining  within  the 
hive,'  answered  I,  '  does  not  allow  the  bees  to  be  idle,  but 
sends  out  to  their  duty  those  who  ought  to  work  abroad; 
and  whatever  each  of  them  brings  in,  she  takes  cognizance 
of  it  and  receives  it,  and  watches  over  the  store  until  there 
is  occasion  to  use  it ;  and  when  the  time  for  using  it  is  come, 
she  dispenses  to  each  bee  its  just  due.  34.  She  also 
presides  over  the  construction  of  the  cells  within,  that 
they  may  be  formed  beautifully  and  expeditiously.  She 
attends,  too,  to  the  rising  progeny,  that  they  may  be  properly 
reared ;  and  when  the  young  bees  are  grown  up,  and 
are  fit  for  work,  she  sends  out  a  colony  of  them  under  some 
leader  taken  from  among  the  younger  bees.'  35.  '  Will 
it  then  be  necessary  for  me/  said  my  wife,  '  to  do  such 
things  ? '  'It  will  certainly  be  necessary  for  you, '  said  I 
'  to  remain  at  home,  and  to  send  out  such  of  the  laborers 
as  have  to  work  abroad,  to  their  duties ;  and  over  such  as 
have  business  to  do  in  the  house  you  must  exercise  a  watch- 


74  XENOPHON 

ful  superintendence.  36.  Whatever  is  brought  into  the 
house,  you  must  take  charge  of  it;  whatever  portion  of  it 
is  required  for  use  you  must  give  it  out;  and  whatever 
should  be  laid  by,  you  must  take  account  of  it  and  keep  it 
safe,  so  that  the  provision  stored  up  for  a  year,  for  exam- 
ple, may  not  be  expended  in  a  month.  Whenever  wool  is 
brought  home  to  you,  you  must  take  care  that  garments 
be  made  for  those  who  want  them.  You  must  also  be  care- 
ful that  the  dried  provisions  may  be  in  a  proper  condition 
for  eating.  37.  One  of  your  duties,  however,'  I  added, 
'  will  perhaps  appear  somewhat  disagreeable,  namely,  that 
whoever  of  all  the  servants  may  fall  sick,  you  must  take 
charge  of  him,  that  he  may  be  recovered.'  38.  '  Nay, 
assuredly,'  returned  my  wife,  '  that  will  be  a  most  agree- 
able office,  if  such  as  receive  good  treatment  are  likely  to 
make  a  grateful  return,  and  to  become  more  attached  to 
me  than  before.'  "  "  Delighted  with  her  answer,"  continued 
Ischomachus,  "  I  said  to  her,  '  Are  not  the  bees,  my  dear 
wife,  in  consequence  of  some  such  care  on  the  part  of  the 
queen  of  the  hive,  so  affected  toward  her,  that,  when  she 
quits  the  hive,  no  one  of  them  thinks  of  deserting  her,  but 
all  follow  in  her  train  ? '  39.  '  I  should  wonder,  how- 
ever,' answered  my  wife,  '  if  the  duties  of  leader  do  not 
rather  belong  to  you  than  to  me;  for  my  guardianship  of 
what  is  in  the  house,  and  distribution  of  it,  would  appear 
rather  ridiculous,  I  think,  if  you  did  not  take  care  that 
something  might  be  brought  in  from  out  of  doors.'  40. 
'  And  on  the  other  hand,'  returned  I,  '  my  bringing  in 
would  appear  ridiculous,  unless  there  were  somebody  to 
take  care  of  what  is  brought  in.  Do  you  not  see,'  said  I, 
'  how  those  who  are  said  to  draw  water  in  a  bucket  full  of 
holes  are  pitied,  as  they  evidently  labor  in  vain  ? '  '  Cer- 
tainly,' replied  my  wife,  '  for  they  are  indeed  wretched,  if 
they  are  thus  employed.' " 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  ECONOMICS  "  75 

41.  "  '  Some  other  of  your  occupations,  my  dear  wife,' 
continued  I,  '  will  be  pleasing  to  you.  For  instance,  when 
you  take  a  young  woman  who  does  not  know  how  to  spin, 
and  make  her  skilful  at  it,  and  she  thus  becomes  of  twice 
as  much  value  to  you.  Or  when  you  take  one  who  is  igno- 
rant of  the  duties  of  a  housekeeper  or  servant,  and,  having 
made  her  accomplished,  trustworthy,  and  handy,  render 
her  of  the  highest  value.  Or  when  it  is  in  your  power  to 
do  services  to  such  of  your  attendants  as  are  steady  and 
useful,  while,  if  any  one  is  found  transgressing,  you  can 
inflict  punishment.  42.  But  you  will  experience  the  great- 
est of  pleasures,  if  you  show  yourself  superior  to  me,  and 
render  me  your  servant,  and  have  no  cause  to  fear  that,  as 
life  advances,  you  may  become  less. respected  in  your  house- 
hold, but  may  trust  that,  while  you  grow  older,  the  better 
consort  you  prove  to  me,  and  the  more  faithful  guardian  of 
your  house  for  your  children,  so  much  the  more  will  you 
be  esteemed  by  your  family.  43.  For  what  is  good  and 
honorable,'  I  added,  '  gains  increase  of  respect,  not  from 
beauty  of  person,  but  from  merits  directed  to  the  benefit 
of  human  life.'  Such  were  the  subjects,  Socrates,  on  which 
as  far  as  I  remember,  I  first  conversed  seriously  with  my 
wife." 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

i.  "  Did  you  then  observe,  Ischomachus,"  said  I,  "  thai 
your  wife  was  at  all  the  more  incited  to  carefulness  by 
your  remarks?"  "Indeed  I  did,"  replied  Ischomachus. 
"  and  I  saw  her  on  one  occasion  greatly  concerned  and  put 
to  the  blush,  because,  when  I  asked  for  something  that 
had  been  brought  into  the  house,  she  was  unable  to  give 
it  me.  2.  Perceiving  that  she  was  in  great  trouble,  how- 
ever, I  said,  '  Do  not  be  cast  down,  my  dear  wife,  because 


76  XENOPHON 

you  cannot  give  me  what  I  am  asking  you  for.  It  is 
indeed  pure  poverty  not  to  have  a  thing  to  use  when  you 
need  it;  but  our  present  want  —  not  to  be  able  to  find  a 
thing  when  you  seek  it  —  is  of  a  less  serious  nature  than 
not  to  seek  it  at  all,  knowing  that  it  is  not  in  your  posses- 
sion. However/  added  I,  '  you  are  not  in  fault  on  the 
present  occasion,  but  I,  as  I  did  not  direct  you,  when  I 
gave  you  the  articles,  where  each  of  them  ought  to  be 
deposited,  so  that  you  might  know  how  you  ought  to  ar- 
range them  and  whence  to  take  them.  3.  There  is  indeed 
nothing,  my  dear  wife,  more  useful  or  more  creditable  to 
people  than  order.  A  chorus  of  singers  and  dancers,  for 
instance,  consists  of  a  number  of  persons;  but  when  they 
do  whatever  each  of  them  happens  to  fancy,  all  appears 
confusion,  and  disagreeable  to  behold;  but  when  they  act 
and  speak  in  concert,  the  same  persons  prove  themselves 
worthy  of  being  seen  and  heard.  .  .  .'  " 

n.  "I  once  saw,  I  think,  the  most  beautiful  and  accu- 
rate arrangement  of  implements  possible,  Socrates,  when 
I  went  on  board  that  large  Phoenician  vessel  to  look  over 
it;  for  I  beheld  a  vast  number  of  articles  severally  ar- 
ranged in  an  extremely  small  space.  12.  For  the  ship," 
continued  he,  "  is  brought  into  harbor  and  taken  out  again 
by  means  of  various  instruments  of  wood  and  tow ;  it 
pursues  its  voyage  with  the  aid  of  much  that  is  called 
suspended  tackle;  it  is  equipped  with  many  machines  to 
oppose  hostile  vessels;  it  carries  about  in  it  many  weapons 
for  the  men ;  it  conveys  all  the  utensils,  such  as  people  use 
in  a  house,  for  each  company  that  take  their  meals  together ; 
and,  in  addition  to  all  this,  it  is  freighted  with  merchandise, 
which  the  owner  of  the  ship  transports  in  it  for  the  purpose 
of  profit.  13.  And  all  the  things  of  which  I  am  speak- 
ing," continued  he,  "  were  stowed  in  a  space  not  much 
larger  than  is  contained  in  a  room  that  holds  half  a  score 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  77 

dinner-couches.  Yet  I  observed  that  they  were  severally 
arranged  in  such  a  manner  that  they  were  not  in  the  way 
of  one  another,  nor  required  anybody  to  seek  for  them,  nor 
were  unprepared  for  use,  nor  difficult  to  remove  from  their 
places,  so  as  to  cause  any  delay  when  it  was  necessary  to 
employ  them  suddenly.  14.  The  pilot's  officer,  too,  who  is 
called  the  man  of  the  prow,  I  found  so  well  acquainted  with 
the  location  of  them  all,  that  he  could  tell,  even  when  out  of 
sight  of  them,  where  each  severally  lay,  and  how  many 
there  were,  not  less  readily  than  a  man  who  knows  his 
letters  can  tell  how  many  there  are  in  the  name  Socrates, 
and  where  each  of  them  stands.  15.  I  saw,"  pursued 
Ischomachus,  "  this  very,  man  inspecting,  at  his  leisure,  all 
the  implements  that  it  is  necessary  to  use  in  a  ship,  and, 
wondering  at  his  minute  examination,  I  asked  him  what  he 
was  doing.  '  I  am  examining,  stranger,'  said  he,  '  in  case 
anything  should  happen,  in  what  state  everything  in  the 
vessel  is,  and  whether  anything  is  wanting,  or  is  placed  so 
as  to  be  inconvenient  for  use.  16.  For,'  said  he,  '  there 
is  no  time,  when  heaven  sends  a  storm  over  the  sea,  either 
to  seek  for  what  may  be  wanting,  or  to  hand  out  what  may 
be  difficult  to  use ;  for  the  gods  threaten  and  punish  the 
negligent;  and  if  they  but  forbear  from  destroying  those 
who  do  nothing  wrong,  we  must  be  very  well  content; 
while,  if  they  preserve  even  those  that  attend  to  everything 
quite  properly,  much  gratitude  is  due  to  them.'  17.  I, 
therefore,  having  observed  the  accuracy  of  this  arrange- 
ment, said  to  my  wife,  that  it  would  be  extremely  stupid 
in  us,  if  people  in  ships,  which  are  comparatively  small 
places,  find  room  for  their  things,  and,  though  they  are 
violently  tossed  about,  nevertheless  keep  them  in  order, 
and,  even  in  the  greatest  alarm,  still  find  out  how  to  get 
what  they  want;  and  if  we,  who  have  large  separate  reposi- 
tories in  our  house  for  everything,  and  our  house  firmly 


78  XENOPHON 

planted  on  the  ground,  should  not  discover  excellent  and 
easily-found  places  for  our  several  articles; — how  could 
this,  I  say,  be  anything  but  extreme  stupidity  in  us  ?  " 

1 8.  "  How  excellent  a  thing  a  regular  arrangement  of 
articles  is,  and  how  easy  it  is  to  find,  in  a  house,  a  place  such 
as  is  suitable  to  put  everything,  I  have  sufficiently  shown. 
19.  But  how  beautiful  an  appearance  it  has,  too,  when 
shoes,  for  instance,  of  whatever  kind  they  are,  are  arranged 
in  order;  how  beautiful  it  is  to  see  garments,  of  whatever 
kind,  deposited  in  their  several  places;  how  beautiful  it  is 
to  see  bed-clothes,  and  brazen  vessels,  and  table  furniture, 
so  arranged;  and  (what,  most  of  all,  a  person  might  laugh 
at,  not  indeed  a  grave  person,  but  a  jester),  I  say,  that  pots 
have  a  graceful  appearance  when  they  are  placed  in  regu- 
lar order.  20.  Other  articles  somehow  appear,  too,  when 
regularly  arranged,  more  beautiful  in  consequence;  for  the 
several  sorts  of  vessels  seem  like  so  many  choral  bands; 
and  the  space  that  is  between  them  pleases  the  eye,  when 
every  sort  of  vessel  is  set  clear  of  it ;  just  as  a  body  of 
singers  and  dancers,  moving  in  a  circle,  is  not  only  in  itself 
a  beautiful  sight,  but  the  space  in  the  middle  of  it,  being 
open  and  clear,  is  agreeable  to  the  eye.  21.  Whether 
what  I  say  is  true,  my  dear  wife,'  said  I,  '  we  may  make 
trial,  without  suffering  any  loss,  or  taking  any  extraordi- 
nary trouble.  Nor  ought  we  at  all  to  labor  under  the 
apprehension  that  it  will  be  difficult  to  find  a  person  who 
will  learn  the  places  for  every  article,  and  remember  how 
to  keep  each  of  them  separate ;  22.  for  we  know  very  well 
that  the  whole  city  contains  ten  thousand  times  as  much 
as  our  house,  and  yet,  whichsoever  of  the  servants  you  order 
to  buy  anything  and  bring  it  to  you  from  the  market  place, 
not  one  of  them  will  be  in  perplexity,  but  every  one  will 
show  that  he  knows  whither  he  must  go  to  fetch  any 
article.  For  this/  added  I,  '  there  is  no  other  reason 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  79 

than  that  each  article  is  deposited  in  its  appointed  place. 
23.  But  if  you  should  seek  for  a  person,  and  sometimes 
even  for  one  who  is  on  his  part  seeking  you,  you  would 
often  give  up  the  search  in  despair  before  you  find  him; 
and  for  this  there  is  no  other  cause,  than  that  it  is  not 
appointed  where  the  particular  person  is  to  await  you.' " 

CHAPTER   IX. 

I.  "And  what  was  the  result,"  said  I,  "my  dear  Ischo- 
machus?  Did  your  wife  appear  to  attend  to  any  of  the 
matters  which  you  took  so  much  pains  to  impress  upon 
her  ?  "  "  What  else  did  she  do  but  promise  that  she  would 
attend  to  what  I  said,  and  manifest  the  greatest  pleas- 
ure, as  if  she  had  found  relief  from  perplexity?  and  she 
requested  me  to  arrange  the  various  articles,  as  soon  as  I 
could,  in  the  manner  which  I  had  proposed."  2.  "  And 
how,  Ischomachus,"  said  I,  "  did  you  arrange  them  for 
her  ?  "  "  What  else  could  I  do  but  determine  upon  show- 
ing her,  in  the  first  place,  the  capacity  of  the  house?  For 
it  is  not  adorned  with  decorations,  but  the  apartments  in 
it  are  constructed  with  such  a  view  that  they  may  be  as 
convenient  receptacles  as  possible  for  the  things  that  are 
to  be  placed  in  them ;  so  that  they  themselves  invite  what- 
ever is  adapted  for  them  respectively.  3.  Thus  the  inner 
chamber,  being  in  a  secure  part  of  the  house,  calls  for  the 
most  valuable  couch  coverings  and  vessels ;  the  dry  parts 
of  the  building  for  the  corn;  the  cool  places  for  the  wine; 
and  the  well-lighted  portions  for  such  articles  of  workman- 
ship, and  vases,  as  require  a  clear  light.  4.  I  pointed  out 
to  her,  too,  that  the  apartments  for  people  to  live  in,  which 
are  well  ornamented,  are  cool  in  the  summer  and  exposed 
to  the  sun  in  winter;  and  I  made  her  notice  as  to  the 
whole  house  how  it  lies  open  to  the  south,  so  that  it  is 


8o  XENOPHON 

plain  it  has  plenty  of  sun  in  winter,  and  plenty  of  shade 
in  summer.  ...  6.  When  we  had  gone  through  these 
places,"  he  continued,  "  we  then  proceeded  to  classify  our 
goods.  We  began  by  collecting,  first  of  all,  whatever  we 
use  for  offering  sacrifices ;  after  this,  we  arranged  the 
dresses  for  women,  such  as  are  suited  for  festival  days ; 
and  then  the  equipments  for  men,  as  well  for  festivities 
as  for  warfare;  and  next  the  bed-covering  in  the  women's 
apartments,  the  bed-coverings  in  the  men's  apartments, 
the  shoes  for  the  women  and  the  shoes  for  the  men.  7.  Of 
utensils  there  were  distinct  collections,  one  of  instruments 
for  spinning,  another  of  those  for  preparing  corn,  another 
of  those  for  cooking,  another  of  those  for  the  bath,  another 
of  those  for  kneading  bread,  another  of  those  for  the  table. 
These  in  general  we  divided  into  two  sorts,  such  as  we 
have  to  use  constantly,  and  such  as  are  required  only  at 
festal  entertainments.  8.  We  also  made  one  assortment  of 
what  would  be  used  in  a  month,  and  another  of  what  was 
computed  to  last  for  a  year ;  for  in  this  way  it  is  less  likely 
to  escape  our  knowledge  how  particular  things  are  expended. 
When  we  had  thus  distinguished  all  our  goods  into  classes, 
we  conveyed  them  severally  to  the  places  best  suited  for 
them.  9.  Afterwards,  whatever  utensils  the  servants  re- 
quire daily,  such  as  those  for  preparing  corn,  for  cooking, 
for  spinning,  and  any  others  of  that  sort,  we  pointed  out 
to  those  who  use  them,  the  places  where  they  were  to  put 
them,  and  then  committed  them  to  their  keeping,  charging 
them  to  keep  them  safely ;  10.  but  such  as  we  use  only  for 
festival  days,  for  entertaining  guests,  or  only  occasionally 
at  long  intervals,  we  committed,  after  pointing  out  the 
places  for  them,  and  numbering  and  making  lists  of  them, 
to  the  housekeeper,  and  told  her  to  give  out  any  of  them  to 
whatever  servant  needed  them,  to  bear  in  mind  to  which 
of  them  she  gave  any  one,  and,  after  receiving  them  back, 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "ECONOMICS"  81 

to  deposit  them  respectively  in  the  places  from  which  she 
took  them." 

ii.  "Of  the  housekeeper  we  made  choice  after  con- 
sidering which  of  the  female  servants  appeared  to  have 
most  self-restraint  in  eating,  and  wine,  and  sleep,  and  con- 
verse with  the  male  sex;  and,  in  addition  to  this,  which 
seemed  to  have  the  best  memory,  and  which  appeared  to 
have  forethought,  that  she  might  not  incur  punishment 
from  us  for  neglect,  and  to  consider  how,  by  gratifying 
us,  she  might  gain  some  mark  of  approbation  in  return. 
12.  We  formed  her  to  entertain  feelings  of  affection  to- 
ward us,  giving  her  a  share  in  our  pleasure  when  we  had 
an  occasion  of  rejoicing,  and  consulting  her,  if  anything 
troublesome  occurred,  with  reference  to  it.  We  also  led 
her  to  become  desirous  of  increasing  our  property,  by 
stimulating  her  to  take  accounts  of  it,  and  making  her  in 
some  degree  partaker  of  our  prosperity.  14.  We  also 
excited  in  her  a  love  of  honesty,  by  paying  more  respect 
to  the  well-principled  than  to  the  unprincipled,  and  show- 
ing her  that  they  lived  in  greater  plenty  and  in  better 
style.  We  then  installed  her  in  her  appointment.  14.  But 
in  addition  to  all  this,  Socrates,"  said  he,  "  I  told  my  wife 
that  there  would  be  no  profit  in  all  these  arrangements, 
unless  she  herself  took  care  that  the  appointed  order  for 
everything  should  be  preserved.  I  also  instructed  her  that 
in  the  best-regulated  political  communities  it  is  not  thought 
sufficient  by  the  citizens  merely  to  make  good  laws,  but 
that  they  also  appoint  guardians  of  the  laws,  who,  over- 
looking the  state,  commend  him  who  acts  in  conformity 
with  the  laws,  and,  if  any  one  transgresses  the  laws,  punish 
him.  15.  I  accordingly  desired  my  wife,"  continued  he, 
"to  consider  herself  the  guardian  of  the  laws  established 
in  the  house,  and  to  inspect  the  household  furniture,  when- 
ever she  thought  proper,  as  the  commander  of  a  garrison 

PAINTER   FED.    Ess. —  6 


82  XENOPHON 

inspects  his  sentinels;  to  signify  her  approbation  if  every- 
thing was  in  good  condition,  as  the  senate  signifies  its 
approval  of  the  horses  and  horse-soldiers ;  to  praise  and 
honor  the  deserving  like  a  queen,  according  to  her  means, 
and  to  rebuke  and  disgrace  any  one  that  required  such 
treatment.  16.  But  I  moreover  admonished  her,"  added 
he,  "  that  she  would  have  no  reason  to  be  displeased,  if  I 
imposed  on  her  more  trouble  with  regard  to  our  property 
than  I  laid  on  the  servants ;  remarking  to  her,  that  servants 
have  only  so  far  a  concern  with  their  master's  property  as 
to  carry  it,  or  keep  it  in  order,  or  take  care  of  it;  but  that 
no  servant  has  any  power  of  using  it  unless  his  master  puts 
it  into  his  hands,  while  it  belongs  all  to  the  master  himself, 
so  that  he  may  use  any  portion  of  it  for  whatever  purpose 
he  pleases.  17.  To  him  therefore  that  receives  the  greatest 
benefit  from  its  preservation,  and  suffers  the  greatest  loss 
by  its  destruction,  I  showed  her  that  the  greatest  interest 
in  its  safety  must  belong." 

18.  "  Well  then,  Ischomachus,"  said  I,  "  how  did  your 
wife,  on  hearing  these  instructions,  show  herself  disposed 
to  comply  with  your  wishes  ? "  "  She  assured  me,  Soc- 
rates," replied  he,  "  that  I  did  not  judge  rightly  of  her, 
if  I  thought  that  I  was  imposing  on  her  what  was  dis- 
agreeable, in  telling  her  that  she  must  take  care  of  the 
property ;  for  she  remarked,"  said  he,  "  that  it  would  have 
been  more  disagreeable  to  her  if  I  had  charged  her  to 
neglect  her  property,  than  if  she  were  required  to  take 
care  of  the  household  goods.  19.  For  it  seems  to  be  a 
provision  of  nature,"  concluded  he,  "  that  as  it  is  easier 
for  a  well-disposed  woman  to  take  care  of  her  children  than 
to  neglect  them,  so  it  is  more  pleasing  (as  he  thought,  he 
said),  for  a  right-minded  woman  to  attend  to  her  prop- 
erty, which,  as  being  her  own,  affords  her  gratification, 
than  to  be  neglectful  of  it." 


IV.    CICERO. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Marcus  Tullius  Cicero,  the  distinguished  orator,  states- 
man, and  philosopher,  was  perhaps  the  best  representative 
of  the  Graeco-Roman  culture  of  his  day.  To  natural  gifts 
of  a  high  order  he  added  the  best  culture  of  Rome  and 
Athens.  The  numerous  works  that  have  descended  to  us 
afford  ample  opportunity  to  judge  of  his  character  and  his 
ability.  In  oratory  he  fairly  rivaled  Demosthenes;  and  in 
his  various  philosophical  treatises,  written  with  a  polished 
copiousness  previously  unknown  in  Rome,  he  has  reflected 
the  best  thought  of  Roman  and  Grecian  antiquity.  Though 
lacking  in  force  and  independence  of  character,  he  was  a 
man  of  keen  penetration  and  strict  integrity. 

Cicero  was  born  at  Arpinum  106  B.  C.  of  an  equestrian 
family.  At  an  early  age  he  was  taken  to  Rome  by  his 
father,  a  man  of  large  influence  and  culture,  that  he  might 
enjoy  the  superior  educational  advantages  of  the  metropolis. 
He  there  studied  under  the  orator  Crassus  and  the  poet 
Archias,  the  latter  of  whom  he  afterwards  defended  in  a 
beautiful  oration.  In  addition  to  the  laws  of  his  country 
and  the  literature  of  Greece  and  Rome,  he  made  a  careful 
study  of  the  leading  systems  of  philosophy,  and  thus  ex- 
emplified the  principles  which  he  inculcated  later,  that  the 
orator  should  be  acquainted  with  the  whole  circle  of  knowl- 
edge. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-six  Cicero  entered  upon  his  legal 
career,  and  at  once  distinguished  himself  by  his  moving 

83 


84  CICERO 

eloquence.  Ostensibly  to  regain  his  health  but  really  to 
escape  the  jealousy  of  the  dictator  Sulla,  he  withdrew  to 
•  Athens,  where  he  further  devoted  himself  to  the  cultivation 
of  his  oratorical  powers.  Through  further  travel,  especially 
in  the  Roman  province  of  Asia,  he  stored  his  capacious  and 
acquisitive  mind  with  new  treasures  of  learning.  On  re- 
turning to  Rome  he  successfully  rilled  several  political  offices, 
and  was  finally  elected,  by  an  overwhelming  vote,  to  the 
consulship.  While  filling  this  office  he  frustrated  the 
treasonable  designs  of  Catiline,  and  was  proclaimed  "  the 
father  of  his  country." 

But  not  long  afterwards  he  became  the  victim  of  partisan 
violence,  and  in  58  B.  C.  suffered  banishment  from  Rome. 
He  resided  for  more  than  a  year  at  Thessalonica.  He  was 
then  recalled  to  Rome,  where  he  was  received  with  great 
enthusiasm.  In  the  civil  war  between  Caesar  and  Pompey, 
he  espoused  the  cause  of  the  latter;  and  after  Pompey's 
defeat  and  death  in  48  B.  C.,  he  lived  in  retirement.  It  was 
during  this  period  of  enforced  leisure  that  he  wrote  his 
principal  works.  He  was  slain  43  B.  C.  by  the  soldiers  of 
Antony,  whom  he  had  opposed  in  a  series  of  orations  to 
which  he  gave  the  name  of  Philippics. 

Cicero  touches  upon  education  in  his  oration  in  defense 
of  Archias,  in  his  dialogue  on  "  Brutus,"  and  in  his 
"  Orator."  It  is  from  the  last  named  work  that  the  fol- 
lowing selection  is  taken.  It  is  interesting  as  presenting 
the  great  Roman's  views  of  what  an  orator's  education 
should  be.  We  should  not  forget  that  .to  Cicero's  mind  the 
orator  was  the  highest  type  of  the  cultured  and  capable, 
gentleman.  He  therefore  presents,  in  this  brief  extract,1 
his  conception  of  the  highest  aim  of  a  generous  and  com- 
plete education. 


SELECTION  FROM  " DE  ORATORE"  85 


SELECTION  FROM  CICERO'S  "DE  ORATORE." 

XV.  "  If,  therefore,  any  one  desires  to  define  and  com- 
prehend the  whole  and  peculiar  power  of  an  orator,  that 
man,  in  my  opinion,  will  be  an  orator,  worthy  of  so  great  a 
name,  who,  whatever  subject  comes  before  him,  and  requires 
rhetorical  elucidation,  can  speak  on  it  judiciously,  in  set 
form,  elegantly,  and  from  memory,  and  with  a  certain 
dignity  of  action.  But  if  the  phrase  which  I  have  used, 
'  on  whatever  subject/  is  thought  by  any  one  too  compre- 
hensive, let  him  retrench  and  curtail  as  much  of  it  as  he 
pleases;  but  this  I  will  maintain,  that  though  the  orator 
be  ignorant  of  what  belongs  to  other  arts  and  pursuits, 
and  understands  only  what  concerns  the  discussions  and 
practice  of  the  Forum,  yet  if  he  has  to  speak  on  those  arts, 
he  will,  when  he  has  learned  what  pertains  to  any  of  them 
from  persons  who  understand  them,  discourse  upon  them 
much  better  than  the  very  persons  of  whom  those  arts 
form  the  peculiar  province.  Thus,  if  our  friend  Sulpicius 
have  to  speak  on  military  affairs,  he  will  inquire  about 
them  of  my  kinsman  Caius  Marius,  and  when  he  has  re- 
ceived information,  will  speak  upon  them  in  such  a  manner, 
that  he  shall  seem  to  Marius  to  understand  them  better 
than  himself.  Or  if  he  has  to  speak  on  the  civil  law,  he 
will  consult  with  you,  and  will  excel  you,  though  eminently 
wise  and  learned  in  it,  in  speaking  on  those  very  points 
which  he  shall  have'  learned  from  yourself.  Or  if  any  sub- 
ject presents  itself,  requiring  him  to  speak  on  the  nature 
and  vices  of  men,  on  desire,  on  moderation,  on  continence, 
on  grief,  on  death,  perhaps,  if  he  thinks  proper  (though 
the  orator  ought  to  have  a  knowledge  of  these  things),  he 
will  consult  with  Sextus  Pompeius,  a  man  learned  in  phi- 


86  CICERO 

losophy.  But  this  he  will  certainly  accomplish,  that,  of 
whatever  matter  he  gains  a  knowledge,  or  from  whomso- 
ever, he  will  speak  upon  it  much  more  elegantly  than  the 
very  person  from  whom  he  gained  the  knowledge.  But, 
since  philosophy  is  distinguished  into  three  parts,  inquiries 
into  the  obscurities  of  physics,  the  subtleties  of  logic,  and 
the  knowledge  of  life  and  manners,  let  us,  if  Sulpicius  will 
listen  to  me,  leave  the  two  former,  and  consult  our  ease; 
but  unless  we  have  a  knowledge  of  the  third,  which  has 
always  been  the  province  of  the  orator,  we  shall  leave  him 
nothing  in  which  he  can  distinguish  himself.  The  part  of 
philosophy,  therefore,  regarding  life  and  manners,  must 
be  thoroughly  mastered  by  the  orator;  other  subjects,  even 
if  he  has  not  learned  them,  he  will  be  able,  whenever  there 
is  occasion,  to  adorn  by  his  eloquence,  if  they  are  brought 
before  him  and  made  known  to  him. 

XVI.  "  For  if  it  is  allowed  amongst  the  learned  that 
Aratus,  a  man  ignorant  of  astronomy,  has  treated  of  heaven 
and  the  constellations  in  extremely  polished  and  excellent 
verses;  if  Nicander,  of  Colophon,  a  man  totally  uncon- 
nected with  the  country,  has  written  well  on  rural  affairs, 
with  the  aid  of  poetical  talent,  and  not  from  understanding 
husbandry,  what  reason  is  there  why  an  orator  should  not 
speak  most  eloquently  on  those  matters  of  which  he  shall 
have  gained  a  knowledge  for  a  certain  purpose  and  occa- 
sion? For  the  poet  is  nearly  allied  to  the  orator;  being 
somewhat  more  restricted  in  numbers,  but  less  restrained 
in  the  choice  of  words,  yet  in  many  kinds  of  embellish- 
ment his  rival  and  almost  equal;  in  one  respect,  assuredly, 
nearly  the  same,  that  he  circumscribes  or  bounds  his  juris- 
diction by  no  limits,  but  reserves  to  himself  full  right  to 
range  wherever  he  pleases  with  the  same  ease  and  liberty. 
For  why  did  you  say,  Scsevola,  that  you  would  not  endure, 
unless  you  were  in  my  domain,  my  assertion,  that  the 


SELECTION  FROM  " DE  ORATORE"  87 

orator  ought  to  be  accomplished  in  every  style  of  speak- 
ing, and  in  every  part  of  polite  learning?  I  should  cer- 
tainly not  have  said  this  if  I  had  thought  myself  to  be  the 
orator  whom  I  conceive  in  my  imagination.  But,  as  Caius 
Lucilius  used  frequently  to  say  (a  man  not  very  friendly 
to  you,  and  on  that  account  less  familiar  with  me  than  he 
could  wish,  but  a  man  of  learning  and  good  breeding),  I 
am  of  this  opinion,  that  no  one  is  to  be  numbered  among 
orators  who  is  not  thoroughly  accomplished  in  all  branches 
of  knowledge  requisite  for  a  man  of  good  breeding;  and 
though  we  may  not  put  forward  such  knowledge  in  con- 
versation, yet  it  is  apparent,  and  indeed  evident,  whether 
we  are  destitute  of  it,  or  have  acquired  it;  as  those  who 
play  at  tennis  do  not  exhibit,  in  playing,  the  gestures  of 
the  palaestra,  but  their  movements  indicate  whether  they 
have  learned  those  exercises  or  are  unacquainted  with 
them ;  and  as  those  who  shape  out  anything,  though  they 
do  not  then  exercise  the  art  of  painting,  yet  make  it  clear 
whether  they  can  paint  or  not;  so  in  orations  to  courts  of 
justice,  before  the  people,  and  in  the  senate,  although  other 
sciences  have  no  peculiar  place  in  them,  yet  is  it  easily 
proved  whether  he  who  speaks  has  only  been  exercised  in 
the  parade  of  declamation,  or  has  devoted  himself  to  oratory 

after  having  been  instructed  in  all  liberal  knowledge." 
***** 

XIX.  "  Certain  men  of  eloquence  at  Athens,  versed  in 
public  affairs  and  judicial  pleadings,  disputed  on  the  other 
side;  among  whom  was  Menedemus,  lately  my  guest  at 
Rome;  but  when  he  had  observed  that  there  is  a  sort  of 
wisdom  which  is  employed  in  inquiring  into  the  methods 
of  settling  and  managing  governments,  he,  though  a  ready 
speaker,  was  promptly  attacked  by  the  other,  a  man  of 
abundant  learning,  and  of  an  almost  incredible  variety  and 
copiousness  of  argument;  who  maintained  that  every  por- 


88  CICERO 

tion  of  such  wisdom  must  be  derived  from  philosophy,  and 
that  whatever  was  established  in  a  state  concerning  the 
immortal  gods,  the  discipline  of  youth,  justice,  patience, 
temperance,  moderation  in  everything,  and  other  matters, 
without  which  states  would  either  not  subsist  at  all,  or  be 
corrupt  in  morals,  was  nowhere  to  be  found  in  the  petty 
treatises,  of  the  rhetoricians.  For  if  those  teachers  of 
rhetoric  included  in  their  art  such  a  multitude  of  the  most 
important  subjects,  why,  he  asked,  were  their  books 
crammed  with  rules  about  proems  and  perorations,  and 
such  trifles  (for  so  he  called  them),  while  about  the  model- 
ing of  states,  the  composition  of  laws,  about  equity,  jus- 
tice, integrity,  about  mastering  the  appetites,  and  forming 
the  morals  of  mankind,  not  one  single  syllable  was  to  be 
found  in  their  pages?  Their  precepts  he  ridiculed  in  such 
a  manner,  as  to  show  that  the  teachers  were  not  only 
destitute  of  the  knowledge  which  they  arrogated  to  them- 
selves, but  that  they  did  not  even  know  the  proper  art  and 
method  of  speaking;  for  he  thought  that  the  principal 
business  of  an  orator  was,  that  he  might  appear  to  those 
to  whom  he  spoke  to  be  such  as  he  would  wish  to  appear 
(that  this  was  to  be  attained  by  a  life  of  good  reputation, 
on  which  those  teachers  of  rhetoric  had  laid  down  nothing 
in  their  precepts)  ;  and  that  the  minds  of  the  audience 
should  be  affected  in  such  a  manner  as  the  orator  would 
have  them  to  be  affected,  an  object,  also,  which  could  by 
no  means  be  attained,  unless  the  speaker  understood  by 
what  methods,  by  what  arguments,  and  by  what  sort  of 
language  the  minds  of  men  are  moved  in  any  particular 
direction ;  but  that  these  matters  were  involved  and  con- 
cealed in  the  profoundest  doctrines  of  philosophy,  which 
these  rhetoricians  had  not  touched  even  with  the  extremity 
of  their  lips.  These  assertions  Menedemus  endeavored 
to  refute,  but  rather  by  authorities  than  by  arguments;  for, 


SELECTION  FROM  " DE  ORATOKE"  89 

repeating  from  memory  many  noble  passages  from  the 
orations  of  Demosthenes,  he  showed  that  that  orator,  while 
he  swayed  the  minds  of  judges  or  of  the  people  by  his  elo- 
quence, was  not  ignorant  by  what  means  he  attained  his  end, 
which  Charmadas  denied  that  any  one  could  know  without 
philosophy. 

XX.  "  To  this  Charmadas  replied,  that  he  did  not  deny 
that  Demosthenes  was  possessed  of  consummate  ability 
and  the  utmost  energy  of  eloquence;  but  whether  he  had 
these  powers  from  natural  genius,  or  because  he  was,  as 
was  acknowledged,  a  diligent  hearer  of  Plato,  it  was  not 
what  Demosthenes  could  do,  but  what  the  rhetoricians 
taught,  that  was  the  subject  of  inquiry.  Sometimes  too  he 
was  carried  so  far  by  the  drift  of  his  discourse,  as  to  main- 
tain that  there  was  no  art  at  all  in  speaking;  and  having 
shown  by  various  arguments  that  we  are  so  formed  by  na- 
ture as  to  be  able  to  flatter,  and  to  insinuate  ourselves,  as 
suppliants,  into  the  favor  of  those  from  whom  we  wish  to 
obtain  anything,  as  well  as  to  terrify  our  enemies  by  men- 
aces, to  relate  matters  of  fact,  to  confirm  what  we  assert, 
to  refute  what  is  said  against  us,  and,  finally,  to  use  en- 
treaty or  lamentation ;  particulars  in  which  the  whole  facul- 
ties of  the  orator  are  employed;  and  that  practice  and 
exercise  sharpened  the  understanding,  and  produced  fluency 
of  speech,  he  rested  his  cause,  in  conclusion,  on  a  multitude 
of  examples  that  he  adduced;  for  first,  as  if  stating  an  in- 
disputable fact,  he  affirmed  that  no  writer  on  the  art  of 
rhetoric  was  ever  even  moderately  eloquent,  going  back  as 
far  as  I  know  not  what  Corax  and  Tisias,  who,  he  said, 
appeared  to  be  the  inventors  and  first  authors  of  rhetorical 
science ;  and  then  named  a  vast  number  of  the  most  eloquent 
men  who  had  neither  learned,  nor  cared  to  understand  the 
rules  of  art,  and  amongst  whom,  (whether  in  jest,  or  be- 
cause he  thought,  or  had  heard  something  to  that  effect,) 


90  CICERO 

he  instanced  me  as  one  who  had  received  none  of  their  in- 
structions, and  yet,  as  he  said,  had  some  abilities  as  a 
speaker;  of  which  two  observations  I  readily  granted  the 
truth  of  one,  that  I  had  never  been  instructed,  but  thought 
that  in  the  other  he  was  either  joking  with  me,  or  was  un- 
der some  mistake.  But  he  denied  there  was  any  art,  except 
such  as  lay  in  things  that  were  known  and  thoroughly  un- 
derstood, things  tending  to  the  same  object,  and  never  mis- 
leading; but  that  everything  treated  by  the  orators  was 
doubtful  and  uncertain ;  as  it  was  uttered  by  those  who  did 
not  fully  understand  it,  and  was  heard  by  them  to  whom 
knowledge  was  not  meant  to  be  communicated,  but  merely 
false,  or  at  least  obscure  notions,  intended  to  live  in  their 
minds  only  for  a  short  time.  In  short,  he  seemed  bent  on 
convincing  me  that  there  was  no  art  of  speaking,  and  that 
no  one  could  speak  skilfully,  or  so  as  fully  to  illustrate  a 
subject,  but  one  who  had  attained  that  knowledge  which  is 
delivered  by  the  most  learned  of  the  philosophers.  On  which 
occasions  Charmadas  used  to  say,  with  a  passionate  admira- 
tion of  your  genius,  Crassus,  that  I  appeared  to  him  very 
easy  in  listening,  and  you  most  pertinacious  in  disputation. 
XXI.  "  Then  it  was  that  I,  swayed  by  this  opinion,  re- 
marked in  a  little  treatise  which  got  abroad,  and  into  peo- 
ple's hands  without  my  knowledge  and  against  my  will,  that 
I  had  known  many  good  speakers,  but  never  yet  any  one 
that  was  truly  eloquent ;  for  I  accounted  him  a  good  speaker, 
who  could  express  his  thoughts  with  accuracy  and  perspi- 
cuity, according  to  the  ordinary  judgment  of  mankind,  be- 
fore an  audience  of  moderate  capacity;  but  I  considered 
him  alone  eloquent,  who  could  in  a  more  admirable  and 
noble  manner  amplify  and  adorn  whatever  subjects  he  chose, 
and  who  embraced  in  thought  and  memory  all  the  principles 
of  everything  relating  to  oratory. 


SELECTION  FROM  "  DE  ORA  TORE  "  gi 

XXXI.  .  .  .  "In  the  first  place,  I  will  not  deny  that, 
as  becomes  a  man  well  born  and  liberally  educated,  I  learned 
those  trite  and  common  precepts  of  teachers  in  general ; 
first,  that  it  is  the  business  of  an  orator  to  speak  in  a  man- 
ner adapted  to  persuade;  next,  that  every  speech  is  either 
upon  a  question  concerning  a  matter  in  general,  without 
specification  of  persons  or  times,  or  concerning  a  matter 
referring  to  certain  persons  and  times.  But  that,  in  either 
case,  whatever  falls  under  controversy,  the  question  with  re- 
gard to  it  is  usually,  whether  such  a  thing  has  been  done,  or, 
if  it  has  been  done,  of  what  nature  it  is,  or  by  what  name  it 
should  be  called ;  or,  as  some  add,  whether  it  seems  to  have 
been  done  rightly  or  not.  That  controversies  arise  also  on 
the  interpretation  of  writing,  in  which  anything  has  been  ex- 
pressed ambiguously,  or  contradictorily,  or  so  that  what  is 
written  is  at  variance  with  the  writer's  evident  intention ;  and 
that  there  are  certain  lines  of  argument  adapted  to  all  these 
cases.  But  that  of  such  subjects  as  are  distinct  from  general 
questions,  part  come  under  the  head  of  judicial  proceedings, 
part  under  that  of  deliberations;  and  that  there  is  a  third 
kind  which  is  employed  in  praising  or  censuring  particular 
persons.  That  there  are  also  certain  commonplaces  on  which 
we  may  insist  in  judicial  proceedings,  in  which  equity  is  the 
object;  others,  which  we  may  adopt  in  deliberations,  all 
which  are  to  be  directed  to  the  advantage  of  those  to  whom 
we  give  counsel ;  others  in  panegyric,  in  which  all  must  be 
referred  to  the  dignity  of  the  persons  commended.  That 
since  all  the  business  and  art  of  an  orator  is  divided  into 
five  parts,  he  ought  first  to  find  out  what  he  should  say; 
next,  to  dispose  and  arrange  his  matter,  not  only  in  a  cer- 
tain order,  but  with  a  sort  of  power  and  judgment;  then  to 
clothe  and  deck  his  thoughts  with  language ;  then  to  secure 
them  in  his  memory ;  and  lastly,  to  deliver  them  with  dignity 
and  grace.  I  had  learned  and  understood  also,  that  before 


93  CICERO 

we  enter  upon  the  main  subject,  the  minds  of  the  audience 
should  be  conciliated  by  an  exordium;  next  that  the 
case  should  be  clearly  stated;  then,  that  the  point  in  con- 
troversy should  be  established ;  then,  that  what  we  maintain 
should  be  supported  by  proof,  and  that  whatever  was  said 
on  the  other  side  should  be  refuted;  and  that,  in  the  con- 
clusion of  our  speech,  whatever  was  in  our  favor  should  be 
amplified  and  enforced,  and  whatever  made  '  for  our  adver- 
saries should  be  weakened  and  invalidated.' 

XXXII.  "  I  had  heard  also  what  is  taught  about  the  cos- 
tume of  a  speech ;  in  regard  to  which  it  is  first  directed  that 
we  should  speak  correctly  and  in  pure  Latin ;  next,  intel- 
ligibly and  with  perspicuity;  then  gracefully;  then  suitably 
to  the  dignity  of  the  subject,  and  as  it  were  becomingly;  and 
I  had  made  myself  acquainted  with  the  rules  relating  to 
every  particular.  Moreover,  I  had  seen  art  applied  to  those 
things  which  are  properly  endowments  of  nature;  for  I 
had  gone  over  some  precepts  concerning  action,  and  some 
concerning  artificial  memory,  which  were  short  indeed,  but 
requiring  much  exercise;  matters  on  which  almost  all  the 
learning  of  those  artificial  orators  is  employed;  and  if  I 
should  say  that  it  is  of  no  assistance,  I  should  say  what  is 
not  true ;  for  it  conveys  some  hints  to  admonish  the  orator, 
as  it  were,  to  what  he  should  refer  each  part  of  his  speech, 
and  to  what  points  he  may  direct  his  view,  so  as  not  to  wan- 
der from  the  object  whiclrhe  has  proposed  to  himself.  But 
I  consider  that  with  regard  to  all  precepts  the  case  is  this, 
not  that  orators  by  adhering  to  them  have  obtained  distinc- 
tion in  eloquence ;  but  that  certain  persons  have  noticed  what 
men  of  eloquence  practiced  of  their  own  accord,  and  formed 
rules  accordingly ;  so  that  eloquence  has  not  sprung  from  art, 
but  art  from  eloquence ;  not  that,  as  I  said  before,  I  entirely 
reject  art,  for  it  is,  though  not  essentially  necessary  to  ora- 
tory, yet  proper  for  a  man  of  liberal  education  to  learn.  And 


SELECTION  FROM  " DE  ORATORE"  93 

by  you,  my  young  friends,  some  preliminary  exercise  must 
be  undergone ;  though  indeed  you  are  already  on  the  course ; 
but  those  who  are  to  enter  upon  a  race,  and  those  who  are 
preparing  for  what  is  to  be  done  in  the  forum,  as  their  field 
of  battle,  may  alike  previously  learn,  and  try  their  powers,  by 
practicing  in  sport."  "  That  sort  of  exercise,"  said  Sulpicius 
"  is  just  what  we  wanted  to  understand ;  but  we  desire  to 
hear  more  at  large  what  you  have  briefly  and  cursorily  de- 
livered concerning  art ;  though  such  matters  are  not  strange 
even  to  us.  Of  that  subject,  however,  we  shall  inquire  here- 
after ;  at  present  we  wish  to  know  your  sentiments  on  exer- 
cise." 

XXXIII.  "  I  like  that  method,"  replied  Crassus,  "  which 
you  are  accustomed  to  practice,  namely,  to  lay  down  a  case 
similar  to  those  which  are  brought  on  in  the  forum,  and  to 
speak  upon  it,  as  nearly  as  possible,  as  if  it  were  a  real  case. 
But  in  such  efforts  the  generality  of  students  exercise  only 
their  voice  (and  not  even  that  skilfully),  and  try  their 
strength  of  lungs,  and  volubility  of  tongue,  and  please  them- 
selves with  a  torrent  of  their  own  words ;  in  which  exercise 
what  they  have  heard  deceives  them,  that  men  by  speaking 
succeed  in  becoming  speakers.  For  it  is  truly  said  also, 
That  men  by  speaking  badly  make  sure  of  becoming  bad 
speakers.  In  those  exercises,  therefore,  although  it  be  use- 
ful even  frequently  to  speak  on  the  sudden,  yet  it  is  more 
advantageous,  after  taking  time  to  consider,  to  speak  with 
greater  preparation  and  accuracy.  But  the  chief  point  of  all 
is  that  which  (to  say  the  truth)  we  hardly  ever  practice  (for 
it  requires  great  labor,  which  most  of  us  avoid)  ;  I  mean, 
to  write  as  much  as  possible.  Writing  is  said  to  be  the  best 
and  most  excellent  modeler  and  teacher  of  oratory;  and  not 
without  reason;  for  if  what  is  meditated  and  considered 
easily  surpasses  sudden  and  extemporary  speech,  a  constant 
and  diligent  habit  of  writing  will  surely  be  of  more  effect 


94  CICERO 

than  meditation  and  consideration  itself;  since  all  the  argu- 
ments relating  to  the  subject  on  which  we  write,  whether 
they  are  suggested  by  art,  or  by  a  certain  power  of  genius  and 
understanding,  will  present  themselves,  and  occur  to  us, 
while  we  examine  and  contemplate  it  in  the  full  light  of  our 
intellect ;  and  all  the  thoughts  and  words,  which  are  the  most 
expressive  of  their  kind,  must  of  necessity  come  under  and 
submit  to  the  keenness  of  our  judgment  while  writing;  and  a 
fair  arrangement  and  collocation  of  the  words  is  effected  by 
writing,  in  a  certain  rhythm  and  measure,  not  poetical,  but 
oratorical.  Such  are  the  qualities  which  bring  applause  and 
admiration  to  good  orators;  nor  will  any  man  ever  attain 
them,  unless  after  long  and  great  practice  in  writing,  how- 
ever resolutely  he  may  have  exercised  himself  in  extem- 
porary speeches;  and  he  who  comes  to  speak  after  practice 
in  writing  brings  this  advantage  with  him,  that  though  he 
speak  at  the  call  of  the  moment,  yet  what  he  says  will  bear 
a  resemblance  to  something  written ;  and  if  ever,  when  he 
comes  to  speak,  he  brings  anything  with  him  in  writing,  the 
rest  of  his  speech,  when  he  departs  from  what  is  written,  will 
flow  on  in  a  similar  strain.  As,  when  a  boat  has  once  been 
impelled  forward,  though  the  rowers  suspend  their  efforts, 
the  vessel  herself  still  keeps  her  motion  and  course  during 
the  intermission  of  the  impulse  and  force  of  the  oars ;  so, 
in  a  continued  stream  of  oratory,  when  written  matter  fails, 
the  rest  of  the  speech  maintains  a  similar  flow,  being  im- 
pelled by  the  resemblance  and  force  acquired  from  what  was 
written. 

XXXIV.  "  But  in  my  daily  exercises  I  used,  when  a 
youth,  to  adopt  chiefly  that  method  which  I  knew  that  Caius 
Carbo,  my  adversary,  generally  practiced ;  which  was,  that, 
having  selected  some  nervous  piece  of  poetry,  or  read  over 
such  a  portion  of  a  speech  as  I  could  retain  in  my  memory, 
I  used  to  declaim  upon  what  I  had  been  reading  in  other 


SELECTION  FROM'"DE  ORATORE"  95 

words,  chosen  with  all  the  judgment  that  I  possessed.  But 
at  length  I  perceived  that  in  that  method  there  was  this  in- 
convenience, that  Ennius,  if  I  exercised  myself  on  his  verses, 
or  Gracchus,  if  I  laid  one  of  his  orations  before  me,  had  fore- 
stalled such  words  as  were  peculiarly  appropriate  to  the 
subject,  and  such  as  were  the  most  elegant  and  altogether 
the  best ;  so  that,  if  I  used  the  same  words,  it  profited  noth- 
ing; if  others,  it  was  even  prejudicial  to  me,  as  I  habituated 
myself  to  use  such  as  were  less  eligible.  Afterwards  I 
thought  proper,  and  continued  the  practice  at  a  rather  more 
advanced  age,  to  translate  the  orations  of  the  best  Greek 
orators ;  by  fixing  upon  which  I  gained  this  advantage,  that 
while  I  rendered  into  Latin  what  I  had  read  in  Greek,  I  not 
only  used  the  best  words,  and  yet  such  as  were  of  common 
occurrence,  but  also  formed  some  words  by  imitation,  which 
would  be  new  to  our  countrymen,  taking  care,  however,  that 
they  were  unobjectionable. 

"  As  to  the  exertion  and  exercise  of  the  voice,  of  the 
breath,  of  the  whole  body,  and  of  the  tongue  itself,  they  do 
not  so  much  require  art  as  labor;  but  in  those  matters  we 
ought  to  be  particularly  careful  whom  we  imitate  and  whom 
we  would  wish  to  resemble.  Not  -only  orators  are  to  be  ob- 
served by  us,  but  even  actors,  lest  by  vicious  habits  we  con- 
tract any  awkwardness  or  ungracefulness.  The  memory  is 
also  to  be  exercised,  by  learning  accurately  by  heart  as  many 
of  our  own  writings,  and  those  of  others,  as  we  can.  In  ex- 
ercising the  memory,  too,  I  shall  not  object  if  you  accustom 
yourself  to  adopt  that  plan  of  referring  to  places  and  figures 
which  is  taught  in  treatises  on  the  art.  Your  language  must 
then  be  brought  forth  from  this  domestic  and  retired  exer- 
cise, into  the  midst  of  the  field,  into  the  dust  and  clamor, 
into  the  camp  and  military  array  of  the  forum ;  you  must 
acquire  practice  in  everything;  you  must  try  the  strength 
of  your  understanding;  and  your  retired  lucubrations  must 


96  CICERO 

be  exposed  to  the  light  of  reality.  The  poets  must  also  be 
studied ;  an  acquaintance  must  be  formed  with  history ;  the 
writers  and  teachers  in  all  the  liberal  arts  and  sciences  must 
be  read,  and  turned  over,  and  must,  for  the  sake  of  exercise, 
be  praised,  interpreted,  corrected,  censured,  refuted;  you 
must  dispute  on  both  sides  of  every  question ;  and  whatever 
may  seem  maintainable  on  any  point  must  be  brought  for- 
ward and  illustrated.  The  civil  war  must  be  thoroughly 
studied ;  laws  in  general  must  be  understood ;  all  antiquity 
must  be  known ;  the  usages  of  the  senate,  the  nature  of  our 
government,  the  rights  of  our  allies,  our  treaties  and  conven- 
tions, and  whatever  concerns  the  interests  of  the  state,  must 
be  learned.  A  certain  intellectual  grace  must  also  be  ex- 
tracted from  every  kind  of  refinement,  with  which,  as  with 
salt,  every  oration  must  be  seasoned.  I  have  poured  forth 
to  you  all  I  had  to  say,  and  perhaps  any  citizen  whom  you 
had  laid  hold  of  in  any  company  whatever,  would  have  re- 
plied to  your  inquiries  on  these  subjects  equally  well." 


V.    SENECA. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Lucius  Annaeus  Seneca  was  born  at  Corduba,  Spain,  in  the 
year  3  B.  C.  His  father,  who  was  a  teacher  of  rhetoric, 
spent  some  years  in  Rome,  where  he  acquired  an  ample 
property  for  his  family.  The  young  Seneca,  after  pursuing 
the  study  of  eloquence,  devoted  himself  to  the  Stoic  philos- 
ophy under  several  able  teachers,  but  subsequently,  upon 
the  urgent  solicitation  of  his  father,  took  up  the  legal  pro- 
fession, in  which  he  became  distinguished  for  his  oratorical 
ability. 

He  entered  public  life  as  quaestor ;  but  having  become  in- 
volved in  some  court  intrigue,  he  was  banished  to  Corsica. 
He  remained  there  eight  years,  a  period  devoted  to  high  phil- 
osophic speculation,  and  to  fruitless  appeals  to  the  Emperor 
Claudius  for  pardon.  At  last  he  was  recalled  through  the  in- 
fluence of  Agrippina,  whose  son,  afterwards  the  infamous 
Nero,  became  his  pupil.  Subsequently  when  Nero  had  be- 
come emperor,  Seneca  fell  under  suspicion,  and  about  63 
A.  D.  he  withdrew  entirely  from  public  life  to  live  in  re- 
tirement. Two  years  later  he  was  condemned  to  death. 

A  noble  spirit  pervades  his  writings.  He  enjoins  piety  to- 
ward God,  and  charity  toward  men.  Goodness  seemed  to  him 
the  supreme  end  of  life;  and  philosophy,  which  teaches  vir- 
tue, he  regarded  as  the  chief  of  liberal  sciences.  Beyond  all 
other  ancient  writers  he  emphasized  the  moral  side  of  educa- 
tion. It  is  unfortunate  that  his  life  did  not  exemplify  his 
lofty  precepts. 

PAINTER   FED.    Ess. —  1  M 


98  SENECA 

Among  his  numerous  writings  may  be  mentioned  his 
treatises  on  Anger,  Consolation,  Providence,  Tranquillity  of 
Mind,  A  Happy  Life,  and  Benefits.  The  first  extract  that 
follows  "  On  the  Education  of  Children,"  is  a  chapter  in 
his  treatise  on  Anger,  which  was  written  about  50  A.  D. 
It  is  here  taken  from  the  translation  of  Aubrey  Stuart,  in 
Bohn's  Classical  Library.  The  other  extract  entitled  "  Phil- 
osophy," is  taken  from  "  The  Morals  of  Seneca,"  edited 
by  Walter  Clode  in  the  Camelot  Series. 

SELECTIONS  FROM  SENECA. 
I.      ON  THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHILDREN. 

It  is,  I  assure  you,  of  the  greatest  service  to  boys  that 
they  should  be  soundly  brought  up,  yet  to  regulate  their  edu- 
cation is  difficult,  because  it  is  our  duty  to  be  careful  neither 
to  cherish  a  habit  of  anger  in  them,  nor  to  blunt  the  edge  of 
their  spirit.  This  needs  careful  watching,  for  both  qualities, 
those  which  are  to  be  encouraged,  and  those  which  are  to 
be  checked,  are  fed  by  the  same  things ;  and  even  a  careful 
watcher  may  be  deceived  by  their  likeness.  A  boy's  spirit  is 
increased  by  freedom  and  depressed  by  slavery ;  it  rises  when 
praised,  and  is  led  to  conceive  great  expectations  of  itself; 
yet  this  same  treatment  produces  arrogance  and  quickness  of 
temper.  We  must,  therefore,  guide  him  between  these  two 
extremes,  using  the  curb  at  one  time  and  the  spur  at  an- 
other. He  must  undergo  no  servile  or  degrading  treatment ; 
he  never  must  beg  abjectly  for  anything,  nor  must  he  gain 
anything  by  begging.  Let  him  rather  receive  it  for  his  own 
sake,  for  his  past  good  behavior,  or  for  his  promises  of  fu- 
ture good  conduct. 

In  contests  with  his  comrades  we  ought  not  to  allow  him 
to  become  sulky  or  fly  into  a  passion ;  let  us  see  that  he  be  on 


ON  THE  EDUCATION  OF  CHILDREN  99 

friendly  terms  with  those  whom  he  contends  with,  so  that 
in  the  struggle  itself  he  may  learn  to  wish  not  to  hurt  his 
antagonist  but  to  conquer  him.  Whenever  he  has  gained  the 
day  or  done  something  praiseworthy,  we  should  allow  him 
to  enjoy  the  victory,  but  not  to  rush  into  transports  of  de- 
light; for  joy  leads  to  exultation,  and  exultation  leads  to 
swaggering  and  excessive  self-esteem. 

We  ought  to  allow  him  some  relaxation,  yet  not  yield 
him  up  to  sloth  and  laziness,  and  we  ought  to  keep  him 
far  beyond  the  reach  of  luxury,  for  nothing  makes  children 
more  prone  to  anger  than  a  soft  and  fond  bringing-up,  so 
that  the  more  children  are  indulged,  and  the  more  liberty 
is  given  them,  the  more  they  are  corrupted.  He  to  whom 
nothing  is  ever  denied,  will  not  be 'able  to  endure  a  rebuff, 
whose  anxious  mother  always  wipes  away  his  tears,  whose 
pedagogue  is  made  to  pay  for  his  shortcomings. 

Do  you  not  observe  how  a  man's  anger  becomes  more 
violent  as  he  rises  in  station?  This  shows  itself  especially 
in  those  who  are  rich  and  noble,  or  in  great  place,  when  the 
favoring  gale  has  roused  all  the  most  empty  and  trivial  pas- 
sions of  their  minds.  Prosperity  fosters  anger,  when  a  man's 
proud  ears  are  surrounded  by  a  mob  of  flatterers,  saying, 
"  That  man  answer  you !  you  do  not  act  according  to  your 
dignity,  you  lower  yourself."  And  so  forth,  with  all  the  lan- 
guage which  can  hardly  be  resisted  even  by  healthy  and 
originally  well-principled  minds.  Flattery,  then,  must  be 
kept  well  out  of  the  way  of  children. 

Let  a  child  hear  the  truth,  and  sometimes  fear  it ;  let  him 
always  reverence  it.  Let  him  rise  in  the  presence  of  his 
elders.  Let  him  obtain  nothing  by  flying  into  a  passion ;  let 
him  be  given  when  he  is  quiet  what  was  refused  him  when  he 
cried  for  it.  Let  him  behold,  but  not  make  use  of  his  father's 
wealth;  let  him  be  reproved  for  what  he  does  wrong. 

It  will  be  advantageous  to  furnish  boys  with  even-tenv 


ioo  SENECA 

pered  teachers  and  pedagogues ;  what  is  soft  and  unformed 
clings  to  what  is  near,  and  takes  its  shape.  The  habits  of 
young  men  reproduce  those  of  their  nurses  and  pedagogues. 
Once  a  boy,  who  was  brought  up  in  Plato's  house,  went 
home  to  his  parents,  and,  on  seeing  his  father  shouting  with 
passion,  said,  "  I  never  saw  any  one  at  Plato's  house  act  like 
that."  I  doubt  not  that  he  learned  to  imitate  his  father 
sooner  than  he  learned  to  imitate  Plato. 

Above  all,  let  his  food  be  scanty,  his  dress  not  costly, 
and  of  the  same  fashion  as  that  of  his  comrades.  If  you  be- 
gin by  putting  him  on  a  level  with  many  others,  he  will  not 
be  angry  when  some  one  is  compared  with  him. 

2."  PHILOSOPHY. 

It  is  of  the  bounty  of  nature  that  we  live,  but  of  philosophy 
that  we  live  well,  which  is,  in  truth,  a  greater  benefit  than 
life  itself.  Not  but  that  philosophy  is  also  the  gift  of  heaven, 
so  far  as  to  the  faculty,  but  not  to  the  science,  for  that  must 
be  the  business  of  industry.  No  man  is  born  wise,  but  wis- 
dom and  virtue  require  a  tutor,  though  we  can  easily  learn 
to  be  vicious  without  a  master.  It  is  philosophy  that  gives  us 
a  veneration  for  God,  a  charity  for  our  neighbor;  that 
teaches  us  our  duty  to  heaven,  and  exhorts  us  to  an  agree- 
ment one  with  another.  It  unmasks  things  that  are  terrible 
to  us,  assuages  our  lusts,  refutes  our  errors,  restrains  our 
luxury,  reproves  our  avarice,  and  works  strangely  upon  ten- 
der natures. 

To  tell  you  now  my  opinion  of  the  liberal  sciences,  I  have 
no  great  esteem  for  anything  that  terminates  in  profit  or 
money ;  and  yet  I  shall  allow  them  to  be  so  far  beneficial,  as 
they  only  prepare  the  understanding,  without  detaining  it. 
They  are  but  the  rudiments  of  wisdom,  and  only  then  to  be 
learned  when  the  mind  is  capable  of  nothing  better,  and  the 


ON  PHILOSOPHY  101 

knowledge  of  them  is  better  worth  the  keeping  than  the 
acquiring.  They  do  not  so  much  as  pretend  to  the  making 
of  us  virtuous,  but  only  to  give  us  an  aptitude  of  disposition 
to  be  so.  The  grammarian's  business  lies  in  a  syntax  of 
speech;  or  if  he  proceed  to  history,  or  the  measuring  of  a 
verse,  he  is  at  the  end  of  his  line.  But  what  signifies  a  con- 
gruity  of  periods,  the  computing  of  syllables,  or  the  modify- 
ing of  numbers,  to  the  taming  of  our  passions,  or  the  re- 
pressing of  our  lusts  ? 

The  philosopher  proves  the  body  of  the  sun  to  be  large, 
but  for  the  true  dimensions  of  it  we  must  ask  the  mathema- 
tician. Geometry  and  music,  if  they  do  not  teach  us  to 
master  our  hopes  and  fears,  all  the  rest  is  to  little  purpose. 
What  does  it  concern  us  which  was  the  elder  of  the  two, 
Homer  or  Hesiod,  or  which  was  the  taller,  Helen  or  Hec- 
uba ?  We  take  a  great  deal  of  pains  to  trace  Ulysses  in  his 
wanderings,  but  were  it  not  time  as  well  spent  to  look  to 
ourselves,  that  we  may  not  wander  at  all?  Are  not  we 
ourselves  tossed  with  tempestuous  passions,  and  both  as- 
saulted by  terrible  monsters  on  the  one  hand,  and  tempted  by 
sirens  on  the  other?  Teach  me  my  duty  to  my  country,  to 
my  father,  to  my  wife,  to  mankind.  What  is  it  to  me 
whether  Penelope  was  honest  or  not?  Teach  me  to  know 
how  to  be  so  myself,  and  to  live  according  to  that  knowledge. 
What  am  I  the  better  for  putting  so  many  parts  together  in 
music,  and  raising  a  harmony  out  of  so  many  different 
tones?  Teach  me  to  tune  my  affections,  and  to  hold  con- 
stant to  myself.  Geometry  teaches  me  the  art  of  measuring 
acres ;  teach  me  to  measure  my  appetites,  and  to  know  when 
I  have  enough ;  teach  me  to  divide  with  my  brother,  and  to 
rejoice  in  the  prosperity  of  my  neighbor.  You  teach  me 
how  I  may  hold  my  own,  and  keep  my  estate ;  but  I  would 
rather  learn  how  I  may  lose  it  all,  and  yet  be  contented. 

He  that  designs  the  institution  of  human  life  should  not  be 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
SANTA  BARBARA  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 


102  SENECA 

over  curious  of  his  words ;  it  does  not  stand  with  his  dignity 
to  be  solicitous  about  sounds  and  syllables,  and  to  debase 
the  mind  of  man  with  small  and  trivial  things,  placing  wis- 
dom in  matters  that  are  difficult  rather  than  great.  If  he  be 
eloquent,  it  is  his  good  fortune,  not  his  business.  Subtile 
disputations  are  only  the  sports  of  wits  that  play  upon  the 
catch,  and  are  fitter  to  be  contemned  than  resolved.  Were 
not  I  a  madman  to  sit  wrangling  about  words,  and  putting 
of  nice  and  impertinent  questions,  when  the  enemy  has  al- 
ready made  the  breach,  the  town  fired  over  my  head,  and  the 
mine  ready  to  play  that  shall  blow  me  up  in  the  air  ?  Were 
this  a  time  for  fooleries?  Let  me  rather  fortify  myself 
against  death  and  inevitable  necessities;  let  me  understand 
that  the  good  of  life  does  not  consist  in  the  length  or  space, 
but  in  the  use  of  it.  ...  Let  us  rather  study  how  to 
deliver  ourselves  from  sadness,  fear,  and  the  burthen  of  all 
our  secret  lusts.  Let  us  pass  over  all  our  most  solemn  levi- 
ties, and  make  haste  to  a  good  life,  which  is  a  thing  that 
presses  us. 


VI.    QUINTILIAN. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Quintilian,  the  famous  rhetorician  of  Rome,  was  born  at 
Calahorra  in  Spain  about  43  A.  D.  Comparatively  little  is 
known  about  his  family  and  early  life ;  but,  like  most  other 
great  men  of  his  time,  he  was  educated  at  the  metropolis  of 
the  empire.  After  returning  for  a  brief  period  to  his  native 
province,  he  established  himself  in  Rome  in  68  A.  D.,  and 
soon  achieved  distinction  as  an  able  pleader  in  the  forum 
and  as  a  successful  teacher  of  eloquence.  Among  his  nu- 
merous pupils  was  the  younger  Pliny.  He  was  invested  by 
Vespasian  with  the  consular  dignity,  and  granted  an  allow- 
ance from  the  public  treasury.  He  was  the  first  Roman 
teacher  that  was  salaried  by  the  state  and  honored  with  the 
title  of  "  professor  of  eloquence." 

After  twenty  years  of  pleading  and  teaching,  in  which 
he  had  accumulated  an  ample  property,  he  retired  from  pub- 
lic employments  and  devoted  the  later  years  of  his  life  to  the 
preparation  of  his  "  Institutes  of  Oratory."  This  celebrated 
work  consists  of  twelve  books,  and  is  the  most  comprehen- 
sive and  systematic  treatise  on  education  that  has  descended 
to  us  from  antiquity.  It  has  been  a  storehouse  from  which 
subsequent  educational  writers,  particularly  in  the  period  of 
the  Renaissance,  have  drawn  copiously  for  materials.  Of 
its  wide  scope  the  author  says :  "  I  shall  proceed  to  regu- 
late the  studies  of  the  orator  from  his  infancy,  just  as  if  he 
were  entrusted  to  me  to  be  brought  up.". 

"  The  great  merit  of  Quintilian's  treatise  on  oratory,"  says 

103 


104  QUINTILIAN 

his  translator  Watson,  "  above  all  works  of  the  kind  that  had 
preceded  it,  was  its  superior  copiousness  of  matter  and 
felicity  of  embellishment.  It  does  not  offer  a  mere  dry  list 
of  rules,  but  illustrates  them  with  an  abundance  of  examples 
from  writers  of  all  kinds,  interspersed  with  observations 
that  must  interest,  not  only  the  orator,  but  readers  of  every 
class.  It  embraces  a  far  wider  field  than  the  '  De  Oratore  ' 
of  Cicero,  and  treats  of  all  that  concerns  eloquence  with  far 
greater  minuteness.  The  orator  conducts  his  pupil  from 
the  cradle  to  the  utmost  heights  of  the  oratorical  art."  Of 
especial  general  interest  are  the  brief  but  penetrating  and  ju- 
dicious criticisms  in  the  tenth  book  upon  the  leading  Gre- 
cian and  Roman  writers. 

The  following  selection  is  taken  from  the  first  book  of  the 
"  Institutes,"  and  presents  in  full  Quintilian's  principles  and 
methods  of  primary  education : 

SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  INSTITUTES  OF 
ORATORY." 

BOOK    I.,    CHAPTER   I. 

I.  Let  a  father,  then,  as  soon  as  his  son  is  born,  conceive, 
first  of  all,  the  best  possible  hopes  of  him ;  for  he  will  thus 
grow  the  more  solicitous  about  his  improvement  from  the 
very  beginning;  since  it  is  a  complaint  without  foundation 
that  "  to  very  few  people  is  granted  the  faculty  of  compre- 
hending what  is  imparted  to  them,  and  that  most,  through 
dullness  of  understanding,  lose  their  labor  and  their  time." 
For,  on  the  contrary,  you  will  find  the  greater  number  of 
men  both  ready  in  conceiving  and  quick  in  learning;  since 
such  quickness  is  natural  to  man ;  and  as  birds  are  born  to 
fly,  horses  to  run,  and  wild  beasts  to  show  fierceness,  so  to  us 
peculiarly  belong  activity  and  sagacity  of  understanding; 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"      105 

whence  the  origin  of  the  mind  is  thought  to  be  from  heaven. 
2.  But  dull  and  unteachable  persons  are  no  more  produced 
in  the  course  of  nature  than  are  persons  marked  by  mon- 
strosity and  deformities ;  such  are  certainly  but  few.  It  will 
be  a  proof  of  this  assertion,  that,  among  boys,  good  promise 
is  shown  in  the  far  greater  number;  and,  if  it  passes  off  in 
the  progress  of  time,  it  is  manifest  that  it  was  not  natural 
ability,  but  care,  that  was  wanting.  3.  But  one  surpasses 
another,  you  will  say,  in  ability.  I  grant  that  this  is  true ;  but 
only  so  far  as  to  accomplish  more  or  less ;  whereas  there  is 
no  one  who  has  not  gained  something  by  study.  Let  him 
who  is  convinced  of  this  truth,  bestow,  as  soon  as  he  becomes 
a  parent,  the  most  vigilant  possible  care  on  cherishing  the 
hopes  of  a  future  orator. 

4.  Before  all  things,  let  the  talk  of  the  child's  nurses  not 
be  ungrammatical.  Chrysippus  wished  them,  if  possible, 
to  be  women  of  some  knowledge ;  at  any  rate  he  would  have 
the  best,  as  far  as  circumstances  would  allow,  chosen.  To 
their  morals,  doubtless,  attention  is  first  to  be  paid;  but  let 
them  also  speak  with  propriety.  5.  It  is  they  that  the  child 
will  hear  first;  it  is  their  words  that  he  will  try  to  form  by 
imitation.  We  are  by  nature  most  tenacious  of  what  we  have 
imbibed  in  our  infant  years;  as  the  flavor,  with  which  you 
scent  vessels  when  new,  remains  in  them;  nor  can  the 
colors  of  wool,  for  which  its  plain  whiteness  has  been  ex- 
changed, be  effaced;  and  those  very  habits,  which  are  of  a 
more  objectionable  nature,  adhere  with  the  greater  tenacity ; 
for  good  ones  are  easily  changed  for  the  worse,  but  when  will 
you  change  bad  ones  into  good?  Let  the  child  not  be  ac- 
customed, therefore,  even  while  he  is  yet  an  infant,  to 
phraseology  which  must  be  unlearned. 

6.  In  parents  I  should  wish  that  there  should  be  as  much 
learning  as  possible.  Nor  do  I  speak,  indeed,  merely  of 
fathers ;  for  we  have  heard  that  Cornelia,  the  mother  of  the 


106  QUINTILIAN 

Gracchi  (whose  very  learned  writing  in  her  letters  has  come 
down  to  posterity),  contributed  greatly  to  their  eloquence; 
the  daughter  of  Lselius  is  said  to  have  exhibited  her  father's 
elegance  in  her  conversation ;  and  the  oration  of  the  daughter 
of  Quintus  Hortensius,  delivered  before  the  Triumviri,  is 
read  not  merely  as  an  honor  to  her  sex.  7.  Nor  let  those 
parents,  who  have  not  had  the  fortune  to  get  learning  them- 
selves, bestow  the  less  care  on  the  instruction  of  their  chil- 
dren, but  let  them,  on  this  very  account,  be  more  solicitous  as 
to  other  particulars. 

Of  the  boys,  among  whom  he  who  is  destined  to  this 
prospect  is  to  be  educated,  the  same  may  be  said  as  concern- 
ing nurses. 

8.  Of  pcedagogi  this  further  may  be  said,  that  they  should 
either  be  men  of  acknowledged  learning,  which  I  should 
wish  to  be  the  first  object,  or  that  they  should  be  conscious 
of  their  want  of  learning ;  for  none  are  more  pernicious  than 
those  who,  having  gone  some  little  beyond  the  first  elements, 
clothe  themselves  in  a  mistaken  persuasion  of  their  own 
knowledge ;  '  since  they  disdain  to  yield  to  those  who  are 
skilled  in  teaching,  and,  growing  imperious,  and  sometimes 
fierce,  in  a  certain  right,  as  it  were,  of  exercising  their 
authority  (with  which  that  sort  of  men  are  generally  puffed 
up),  they  teach  only  their  own  folly.  9.  Nor  is  their  mis- 
conduct less  prejudicial  to  the  manners  of  their  pupils ;  for 
Leonidas,  the  tutor  of  Alexander,  as  is  related  by  Diogenes 
of  Babylon,  tinctured  him  with  certain  bad  habits,  which 
adhered  to  him,  from  his  childish  education,  even  when  he 
was  grown  up  and  become  the  greatest  of  kings. 

10.  If  I  seem  to  my  reader  to  require  a  great  deal,  let 
him  consider  that  it  is  an  orator  that  is  to  be  educated;  an 
arduous  task,  even  when  nothing  is  deficient  for  the  forma- 
tion of  his  character ;  and  that  more  and  more  difficult  la- 
bors yet  remain ;  for  there  is  need  of  constant  study,  the  most 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY''      10; 

excellent  teachers,  and  a  variety  of  mental  exercises,  n. 
The  best  of  rules,  therefore,  are  to  be  laid  down ;  and  if  any 
one  shall  refuse  to  observe  them,  the  fault  will  lie,  not  in 
the  method,  but  in  the  man. 

If  however  it  should  not  be  the  good  fortune  of  children 
to  have  such  nurses  as  I  should  wish,  let  them  at  least  have 
one  attentive  p&dagogus,  not  unskilled  in  language,  who,  if 
anything  is  spoken  incorrectly  by  the  nurse  in  the  presence 
of  his  pupil,  may  at  once  correct  it,  and  not  let  it  settle  in 
his  mind.  But  let  it  be  understood  that  what  I  prescribed 
at  first  is  the  right  course,  and  this  only  a  remedy. 

12.  I  prefer  that  a  boy  should  begin  with  the  Greek  lan- 
guage, because  he  will  acquire  Latin,  which  is  in  general 
use,  even  though  we  tried  to  prevent  him,  and  because,  at 
the  same  time,  he  ought  first  to  be  instructed  in  Greek  learn- 
ing, from  which  ours  is  derived.  13.  Yet  I  should  not 
wish  this  rule  to  be  so  superstitiously  observed  that  he 
should  for  a  long  time  speak  or  learn  only  Greek,  as  is  the 
custom  with  most  people;  for  hence  arise  many  faults  of 
pronunciation,  which  is  viciously  adapted  to  foreign  sounds, 
and  also  of  language,  in  which  when  Greek  idioms  have  be- 
come inherent  by  constant  usage,  they  keep  their  place  most 
pertinaciously  even  when  we  speak  a  different  tongue.  14. 
The  study  of  Latin  ought  therefore  to  follow  at  no  long  in- 
terval, and  soon  after  to  keep  pace  with  the  Greek;  and 
thus  it  will  happen,  that,  when  we  have  begun  to  attend  to 
both  tongues  with  equal  care,  neither  will  impede  the  other. 

15.  Some  have  thought  that  boys,  as  long  as  they  are 
under  seven  years  of  age,  should  not  be  set  to  learn,  be- 
cause that  is  the  earliest  age  that  can  understand  what  is 
taught,  and  endure  the  labor  of  learning.  Of  which  opinion 
a  great  many  writers  say  that  Hesiod  was,  at  least  such 
writers  as  lived  before  Aristophanes  the  grammarian,  for  he 
was  the  first  to  deny  that  the  Hupothakai,  in  which  this 


io8  QUINT  I  LI  AM 

opinion  is  found,  was  the  work  of  that  poet.  16.  But  other 
writers  likewise,  among  whom  is  Eratosthenes,  have  given 
the  same  advice.  Those,  however,  advise  better,  who,  like 
Chrysippus  think  that  no  part  of  a  child's  life  should  be  ex- 
empt from  tuition;  for  Chrysippus,  though  he  has  allowed 
three  years  to  the  nurses,  yet  is  of  opinion  that  the  minds 
of  children  may  be  imbued  with  excellent  instruction  even 
by  them.  17.  And  why  should  not  that  age  be  under  the 
influence  of  learning,  which  is  now  confessedly  subject  to 
moral  influences?  I  am  not  indeed  ignorant  that,  during 
the  whole  time  of  which  I  am  speaking,  scarcely  as  much  can 
be  done  as  one  year  may  afterwards  accomplish,  yet  those 
who  are  of  the  opinion  which  I  have  mentioned,  appear  with 
regard -to  this  part  of  life  to  have  spared  not  so  much  the 
learners  as  the  teachers.  18.  What  else,  after  they  are  able 
to  speak,  will  children  do  better,  for  they  must  do  some- 
thing? Or  why  should  we  despise  the  gain,  how  little  so- 
ever it  be,  previous  to  the  age  of  seven  years  ?  For  certain- 
ly, small  as  may  be  the  proficiency  which  an  earlier  age 
exhibits,  the  child  will  yet  learn  something  greater  during 
the  very  year  in  which  he  would  have  been  learning  some- 
thing less.  19.  This  advancement  extended  through  each 
year,  is  a  profit  on  the  whole ;  and  whatever  is  gained  in 
infancy  is  an  acquisition  to  youth.  The  same  rule  should 
be  prescribed  as  to  the  following  years,  so  that  what  every 
boy  has  to  learn,  he  may  not  be  too  late  in  beginning  to 
learn.  Let  us  not  then  lose  even  the  earliest  period  of  life, 
and  so  much  the  less,  as  the  elements  of  learning  depend  on 
the  memory  alone,  which  not  only  exists  in  children,  but  is  at 
that  time  of  life  even  most  tenacious. 

20.  Yet  I  am  not  so  unacquainted  with  differences  of  age, 
as  to  think  that  we  should  urge  those  of  tender  years  se- 
verely, or  exact  a  full  complement  of  work  from  them ;  for  it 
will  be  necessary,  above  all  things,  to  take  care  lest  the  child 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"      109 

should  conceive  a  dislike  to  the  application  which  he  cannot 
yet  love,  and  continue  to  dread  the  bitterness  which  he  has 
once  tasted,  even  beyond  the  years  of  infancy.  Let  his  in- 
struction be  an  amusement  to  him;  let  him  be  questioned, 
and  praised ;  and  let  him  never  feel  pleased  that  he  does  not 
know  a  thing ;  and  sometimes,  if  he  is  unwilling  to  learn,  let 
another  be  taught  before  him,  of  whom  he  may  be  envious. 
Let  him  strive  for  victory  now  and  then,  and  generally  sup- 
pose that  he  gains  it;  and  let  his  powers  be  called  forth  by 
rewards,  such  as  that  age  prizes. 

21.  We  are  giving  small  instructions,  while  professing 
to  educate  an  orator;  but  even  studies  have  their  infancy; 
and  as  the  rearing  of  the  very  strongest  bodies  commenced 
with  milk  and  the  cradle,  so  he,  who  was  to  be  the  most  elo- 
quent of  men,  once  uttered  cries,  tried  to  speak  at  first  with 
a  stuttering  voice,  and  hesitated  at  the  shapes  of  the  letters. 
Nor,  if  it  is  impossible  to  learn  a  thing  completely,  is  it 
therefore  unnecessary  to  learn  it  at  all.  22.  If  no  one 
blames  a  father,  who  thinks  that  these  matters  are  not  to  be 
neglected  in  regard  to  his  son,  why  should  he  be  blamed 
who  communicates  to  the  public  what  he  would  practice  to 
advantage  in  his  own  house?  And  this  is  so  much  the  more 
the  case,  as  younger  minds  more  easily  take  in  small  things ; 
and  as  bodies  cannot  be  formed  to  certain  flexures  of  the 
limbs  unless  while  they  are  tender,  so  even  strength  itself 
makes  our  minds  likewise  more  unyielding  to  most  things. 
23.  Would  Philip,  king  of  Macedonia,  have  wished  the 
first  principles  of  learning  to  be  communicated  to  his  son 
Alexander  by  Aristotle,  the  greatest  philosopher  of  that  age, 
or  would  Aristotle  have  undertaken  that  office,  if  they  had 
not  both  thought  that  the  first  rudiments  of  instruction  are 
best  treated  by  the  most  accomplished  teacher,  and  have  an 
influence  on  the  whole  course?  24.  Let  us  suppose,  then, 
that  Alexander  were  committed  to  me,  and  laid  in  my  lap, 


i  io  QUINTILIAN 

an  infant  worthy  of  so  much  solicitude  (though  every  man 
thinks  his  own  son  worthy  of  similar  solicitude),  should  I 
be  ashamed,  even  in  teaching-  him  his  very  letters,  to  point 
out  some  compendious  methods  of  instruction? 

For  that  at  least,  which  I  see  practiced  in  regard  to  most 
children,  by  no  means  pleases  me,  namely,  that  they  learn 
the  names  and  order  of  the  letters  before  they  learn  their 
shapes.  25.  This  method  hinders  their  recognition  of  them, 
as,  while,  they  follow  their  memory  that  takes  the  lead,  they 
do  not  fix  their  attention  on  the  forms  of  the  letters.  This  is 
the  reason  why  teachers,  even  when  they  appear  to  have 
fixed  them  sufficiently  in  the  minds  of  children,  in  the  straight 
order  in  which  they  are  usually  first  written,  make  them  go 
over  them  again  the  contrary  way,  and  confuse  them  by 
variously  changing  the  arrangement,  until  their  pupils  know 
them  by  their  shape,  not  by  their  place.  It  will  be  best  for 
children,  therefore,  to  be  taught  the  appearances  and  names 
of  the  letters  at  once,  as  they  are  taught  those  of  men.  26. 
But  that  which  is  hurtful  with  regard  to  letters,  will  be  no 
impediment  with  regard  to  syllables.  I  do  not  disapprove, 
however,  the  practice,  which  is  well  known,  of  giving  chil- 
dren, for  the  sake  of  stimulating  them  to  learn,  ivory  figures 
of  letters  to  play  with,  or  whatever  else  can  be  invented,  in 
which  that  infantine  age  may  take  delight,  and  which  may 
be  pleasing  to  handle,  look  at,  or  name. 

27.  But  as  soon  as  the  child  shall  have  begun  to  trace  the 
forms  of  the  letters,  it  will  not  be  improper  that  they  should 
be  cut  for  him,  as  exactly  as  possible,  on  a  board,  that  his 
style  may  be  guided  along  them  as  along  grooves,  for  he 
will  then  make  no  mistakes,  as  on  wax  (since  he  will  be  kept 
in  by  the  edge  on  each  side,  and  will  be  unable  to  stray  be- 
yond the  boundary)  ;  and,  by  following  these  sure  traces 
rapidly  and  frequently,  he  will  form  his  hand,  and  not  re- 
quire the  assistance  of  a  person  to  guide  his  hand  with  his 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"      in 

own  hand  placed  over  it.  28.  The  accomplishment  of  writ- 
ing well  and  expeditiously,  which  is  commonly  disregarded 
by  people  of  quality,  is  by  no  means  an  indifferent  matter ; 
for  as  writing  itself  is  the  principal  thing  in  our  studies,  and 
that  by  which  alone  sure  proficiency,  resting  on  the  deepest 
roots,  is  secured,  a  too  slow  way  of  writing  retards  thought, 
a  rude  and  confused  hand  cannot  be  read;  and  hence  fol- 
lows another  task,  that  of  reading  off  what  is  to  be  copied 
from  the  writing.  29.  At  all  times,  therefore,  and  in  all 
places,  and  especially  in  writing  private  and  familiar  letters, 
.it  will  be  a  source  of  pleasure  to  us,  not  to  have  neglected 
even  this  acquirement. 

30.  For  learning  syllables  there  is  no  short  way ;  they 
must  all  be  learned  throughout;  nor  are  the  most  difficult 
of  them,  as  is  the  general  practice,  to  be  postponed,  that  chil- 
dren may  be  at  a  loss,  forsooth,  in  writing  words.  31. 
Moreover,  we  must  not  even  trust  to  the  first  learning  by 
heart ;  it  will  be  better  to  have  syllables  repeated,  and  to  im- 
press them  long  upon  the  memory ;  and  in  reading  too,  not  to 
hurry  on,  in  order  to  make  it  continuous  or  quick,  until  the 
clear  and  certain  connection  of  the  letters  becomes  familiar, 
without  at  least  any  necessity  to  stop  for  recollection.  Let 
the  pupil  then  begin  to  form  words  from  syllables,  and  to 
join  phrases  together  from  words.  32.  It  is  incredible 
how  much  retardation  is  caused  to  reading,  by  haste ;  for 
hence  arise  hesitation,  interruption,  and  repetition,  as  chil- 
dren attempt  more  than  they  can  manage ;  and  then,  after 
making  mistakes,  they  become  distrustful  even  of  what  they 
know.  33.  Let  reading,  therefore,  be  at  first  sure,  then 
continuous,  and  for  a  long  time  slow,  until,  by  exercise,  a 
correct  quickness  is  gained.  34.  For  to  look  to  the  right,  as 
everybody  teaches,  and  to  look  forward,  depends  not  mere- 
ly on  rule,  but  on  habit,  since,  while  the  child  is  looking  to 
what  follows,  he  has  to  pronounce  what  goes  before,  and, 


ii2  QUINTILIAN 

what  is  very  difficult,  the  direction  of  his  thoughts  must  be 
divided,  so  that  one  duty  may  be  discharged  with  his  voice, 
and  another  with  his  eyes. 

When  the  child  shall  have  begun,  as  is  the  practice,  to 
write  words,  it  will  cause  no  regret  if  we  take  care  that  he 
may  not  waste  his  efforts  on  common  words,  and  such  as 
perpetually  occur.  35.  For  he  may  readily  learn  the  ex- 
planations of  obscure  terms,  which  the  Greeks  call  glossal, 
while  some  other  occupation  is  before  him,  and  acquire, 
amidst  his  first  rudiments,  a  knowledge  of  that  which  would 
afterwards  demand  a  special  time  for  it.  Since,  too,  we  are 
still  attending  to  small  matters,  I  would  express  a  wish  that 
even  the  lines,  which  are  set  him  for  his  imitation  in  writing, 
should  not  contain  useless  sentences,  but  such  as  convey 
some  moral  instruction.  36.  The  remembrance  of  such 
admonitions  will  attend  him  to  old  age,  and  will  be  of  use 
even  for  the  formation  of  his  character.  It  is  possible  for 
him,  also,  to  learn  the  sayings  of  eminent  men,  and  select 
passages,  chiefly  from  the  poets  (for  the  reading  of  poets  is 
more  pleasing  to  the  young) ,  in  his  play-time ;  since  memory 
(as  I  shall  show  in  its  proper  place)  is  most  necessary  to 
an  orator,  and  is  eminently  strengthened  and  nourished  by 
exercise;  and,  at  the  age  of  which  we  are  now  speaking, 
and  which  cannot,  as  yet,  produce  anything  of  itself,  it  is 
almost  the  only  faculty  that  can  be  improved  by  the  aid  of 
teachers. 

37.  It  will  not  be  improper,  however,  to  require  of  boys 
of  this  age  (in  order  that  their  pronunciation  may  be  fuller 
and  their  speech  more  distinct)  to  roll  forth,  as  rapidly  as 
possible,  certain  words  and  lines  of  studied  difficulty,  com- 
posed of  several  syllables,  and  those  roughly  clashing  togeth- 
er, and,  as  it  were,  rugged-sounding;  the  Greeks  call  them 
Chalepoi.  This  may  seem  a  trifling  matter  to  mention,  but 
when  it  is  neglected,  many  faults  of  pronunciation,  unless 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"       113 

they  are  removed  in  the  years  of  youth,  are  fixed  by  incor- 
rigible ill  habit  for  the  rest  of  life. 


CHAPTER  II. 

i.  But  let  us  suppose  that  the  child  now  gradually  in- 
creases in  size,  and  leaves  the  lap,  and  applies  himself  to 
learning  in  earnest.  In  this  place,  accordingly,  must  be  con- 
sidered the  question,  whether  it  be  more  advantageous  to 
confine  the  learner  at  home,  and  within  the  walls  of  a  private 
house,  or  to  commit  him  to  the  large  numbers  of  a  school, 
and,  as  it  were,  to  public  teachers.  2.  The  latter  mode,  I 
observe,  has  had  the  sanction  of  those  by  whom  the  polity 
of  the  most  eminent  states  was  settled,  as  well  as  that  of  the 
most  illustrious  authors. 

Yet  it  is  not  to  be  concealed,  that  there  are  some  who, 
from  certain  notions  of  their  own,  disapprove  of  this  almost 
public  mode  of  instruction.  These  persons  appear  to  be 
swayed  chiefly  by  two  reasons :  one,  that  they  take  better 
precautions  for  the  morals  of  the  young,  by  avoiding  a  con- 
course of  human  beings  of  that  age  which  is  most  prone 
to  vice  (from  which  cause  I  wish  it  were  falsely  asserted 
that  provocations  to  immoral  conduct  arise)  ;  the  other, 
that  whoever  may  be  the  teacher,  he  is  likely  to  bestow  his 
time  more  liberally  on  one  pupil,  than  if  he  has  to  divide  it 
among  several.  3.  The  first  reason  indeed  deserves  great 
consideration ;  for  if  it  were  certain  that  schools,  though  ad- 
vantageous to  studies,  are  pernicious  to  morals,  a  virtuous 
course  of  life  would  seem  to  me  preferable  to  one  even  of 
the  most  distinguished  eloquence.  But  in  my  opinion,  the 
two  are  combined  and  inseparable ;  for  I  am  convinced  that 
no  one  can  be  an  orator  who  is  not  a  good  man ;  and,  even 
if  any  one  could,  I  should  be  unwilling  that  he  should  be. 
On  this  point,  therefore,  I  shall  speak  first. 

PAINTER    PED.    Ess.— ^  8 


ii4  QUINTILIAN 

4.  People  think  that  morals  are  corrupted  in  schools; 
for  indeed  they  are  at  times  corrupted ;  but  such  may  be  the 
case  even  at  home.  Many  proofs  of  this  fact  may  be  ad- 
duced; proofs  of  character  having  been  vitiated,  as  well  as 
preserved  with  the  utmost  purity,  under  both  modes  of  edu- 
cation. It  is  the  disposition  of  the  individual  pupil,  and  the 
care  taken  of  him,  that  make  the  whole  difference.  Suppose 
that  his  mind  be  prone  to  vice,  suppose  that  there  be  neglect 
in  forming  and  guarding  his  morals  in  early  youth,  seclusion 
would  afford  no  less  opportunity  for  immorality  than  pub- 
licity ;  for  the  private  tutor  may  be  himself  of  bad  character ; 
nor  is  intercourse  with  vicious  slaves  at  all  safer  than  that 
with  immodest  free-born  youths.  5.  But  if  his  disposition 
be  good,  and  if  there  be  not  a  blind  and  indolent  negligence 
on  the  part  of  his  parents,  it  will  be  possible  for  them  to 
select  a  tutor  of  irreproachable  character,  (a  matter  to  which 
the  utmost  attention  is  paid  by  sensible  parents,)  and  to  fix 
on  a  course  of  instruction  of  the  very  strictest  kind;  while 
they  may  at  the  same  time  place  at  the  elbow  of  their  son 
some  influential  friend  or  faithful  freedman,  whose  constant 
attendance  may  improve  even  those  of  whom  apprehensions 
may  be  entertained. 

6.  The  remedy  for  this  object  of  fear  is  easy.  Would 
that  we  ourselves  did  not  corrupt  the  morals  of  our  chil- 
dren !  We  enervate  their  very  infancy  with  luxuries.  That 
delicacy  of  education,  which  we  call  fondness,  weakens  all 
the  powers,  both  of  body  and  mind.  What  luxury  will  he 
not  covet  in  his  manhood,  who  crawls  about  on  purple! 
He  cannot  yet  articulate  his  first  words,  when  he  already 
distinguishes  scarlet,  and  wants  his  purple.  7.  We  form 
the  palate  of  children  before  we  form  their  pronunciation. 
They  grow  up  in  sedan  chairs;  if  they  touch  the  ground, 
they  hang  by  the  hands  of  attendants  supporting  them  on 
each  side.  We  are  delighted  if  they  utter  anything  im- 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"       115 

modest.  Expressions  which  would  not  be  tolerated  even 
from  the  effeminate  youths  of  Alexandria,  we  hear  from 
them  with  a  smile  and  a  kiss.  Nor  is  this  wonderful;  we 
have  taught  them;  they  have  heard  such  language  from 
ourselves. 

9.  But,  it  is  said,  one  tutor  will  have  more  time  for  one 
pupil.  First  of  all,  however,  nothing  prevents  that  one 
pupil,  whoever  he  may  be,  from  being  the  same  with  him 
who  is  taught  in  the  school.  But  if  the  two  objects  cannot 
be  united,  I  should  still  prefer  the  day-light  of  an  honor- 
able seminary  to  darkness  and  solitude;  for  every  eminent 
teacher  delights  in  a  large  concourse  of  pupils,  and  thinks 
himself  worthy  of  a  still  more  numerous  auditory.  10.  But 
inferior  teachers,  from  a  consciousness  of  their  inability, 
do  not  disdain  to  fasten  on  single  pupils,  and  to  discharge 
the  duty  as  it  were  of  padagogi.  n.  But  supposing  that 
either  interest,  or  friendship,  or  money,  should  secure  to 
any  parent  a  domestic  tutor  of  the  highest  learning,  and  in 
every  respect  unrivaled,  will  he  however  spend  the  whole 
day  on  one  pupil?  Or  can  the  application  of  any  pupil  be 
so  constant  as  not  to  be  sometimes  wearied,  like  the  sight 
of  the  eyes,  by  continued  direction  to  one  object,  especially 
as  study  requires  the  far  greater  portion  of  time  to  be  soli- 
tary? 12.  For  the  tutor  does  not  stand  by  the  pupil  while 
he  is  writing,  or  learning  by  heart,  or  thinking ;  and  when  he 
is  engaged  in  any  of  those  exercises,  the  company  of  any 
person  whatsoever  is  a  hindrance  to  him.  Nor  does  every 
kind  of  reading  require  at  all  times  a  praelector  or  inter- 
preter;  for  when,  if  such  were  the  case,  would  the  knowl- 
edge of  so  many  authors  be  gained?  The  time,  therefore, 
during  which  the  work  as  it  were  for  the  whole  day  may 
be  laid  out,  is  but  short.  13.  Thus  the  instructions  which 
are  to  be  given  to  each  may  reach  to  many.  Most  of  them, 
indeed,  are  of  such  a  nature  that  they  may  be  communi- 


u6  QUINT  I  LI  AN 

cated  to  all  at  once  with  the  same  exertion  of  the  voice. 
I  say  nothing  of  the  topics  and  declamations  of  the  rheto- 
ricians, at  which,  certainly,  whatever  be  the  number  of  the 
audience,  each  will  still  carry  off  the  whole.  14.  For  the 
voice  of  the  teacher  is  not  like  a  meal,  which  will  not  suffice 
for  more  than  a  certain  number,  but  like  the  sun,  which 
diffuses  the  same  portion  of  light  and  heat  to  all.  If  a 
grammarian,  too,  discourses  on  the  art  of  speaking,  solves 
questions,  explains  matters  of  history,  or  illustrates  poems, 
as  many  as  shall  hear  him  will  profit  by  his  instructions. 

15.  But,  it  may  be  said,  number  is  an  obstacle  to  correc- 
tion  and  explanation.     Suppose  that  this   be   a  disadvan- 
tage in  a  number  (for  what  in  general  satisfies  us  in  every 
respect?)    we   will   soon   compare   that   disadvantage   with 
other  advantages. 

Yet  I  would  not  wish  a  boy  to  be  sent  to  a  place  where 
he  will  be  neglected.  Nor  should  a  good  master  encumber 
himself  with  a  greater  number  of  scholars  than  he  can  man- 
age; and  it  is  to  be  a  chief  object  with  us,  also,  that  the 
master  may  be  in  every  way  our  kind  friend,  and  may  have 
regard  in  his  teaching,  not  so  much  to  duty,  as  to  affection. 
Thus  we  shall  never  be  confounded  with  the  multitude. 

16.  Nor  will  any  master,  who  is  in  the  slightest  degree 
tinctured  with   literature,   fail  particularly  to   cherish   that 
pupil   in   whom   he   shall   observe   application   and   genius, 
even  for  his  own  honor.     But  even  if  great  schools  ought 
to  be  avoided  (a  position  to  which  I  cannot  assent,  if  num- 
bers flock  to  a  master  on  account  of  his  merit),  the  rule  is 
not  to  be  carried  so  far  that  schools  should  be  avoided 
altogether.     It   is   one   thing  to   shun   schools,   another  to 
choose  from  them. 

17.  If  I  have  now  refuted  the  objections  which  are  made 
to  schools,  let  me  next  state  what  opinions  I  myself  enter- 
tain. 1 8.  First  of  all,  let  him  who  is  to  be  an  orator,  and 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"      117 

who  must  live  amidst  the  greatest  publicity,  and  in  the  full 
daylight  of  public  affairs,  accustom  himself,  from  his  boy- 
hood, not  to  be  abashed  at  the  sight  of  men,  nor  pine  in  a 
solitary  and  as  it  were  recluse  way  of  life.  The  mind  re- 
quires to  be  constantly  excited  and  roused,  while  in  such 
retirement  it  either  languishes,  and  contracts  rust,  as  it 
were,  in  the  shade,  or  on  the  other  hand,  becomes  swollen 
with  empty  conceit,  since  he  who  compares  himself  to  no 
one  else,  will  necessarily  attribute  too  much  to  his  own 
powers.  19.  Besides,  when  his  acquirements  are  to  be 
displayed  in  public,  he  is  blinded  at  the  light  of  the  sun, 
and  stumbles  at  every  new  object,  as  having  learned  in 
solitude  that  which  is  to  be  done  in  public.  20.  I  say 
nothing  of  friendships  formed  at  school,  which  remain  in 
full  force  even  to  old  age,  as  if  cemented  with  a  certain 
religious  obligation ;  for  to  have  been  initiated  in  the  same 
studies  is  a  not  less  sacred  bond  than  to  have  been  initiated  in 
the  same  sacred  rites.  That  sense,  too,  which  is  called  com- 
mon sense,  where  shall  a  young  man  learn  when  he  has  sepa- 
rated himself  from  society,  which  is  natural  not  to  men  only, 
but  even  to  dumb  animals?  21.  Add.  to  this,  that,  at 
home,  he  can  learn  only  what  is  taught  himself;  at  school, 
even  what  is  taught  others.  22.  He  will  daily  hear  many 
things  commended,  many  things  corrected ;  the  idleness  of 
a  fellow  student,  when  reproved,  will  be  a  warning  to  him; 
the  industry  of  any  one,  when  commended,  will  be  a  stimu- 
lus;  emulation  will  be  excited  by  praise;  and  he  will  think 
it  a  disgrace  to  yield  to  his  equals  in  age,  and  an  honor 
to  surpass  his  seniors.  All  these  matters  excite  the  mind; 
and  though  ambition  itself  be  a  vice,  yet  it  is  often  the 
parent  of  virtues. 

23.  I  remember  a  practice  that  was  observed  by  my 
masters,  not  without  advantage.  Having  divided  the  boys 
into  classes,  they  assigned  them  their  order  in  speaking  in 


n8  QUINTILIAN 

conformity  to  the  abilities  of  each;  and  thus  each  stood  in 
the  higher  place  to  declaim  according  as  he  appeared  to 
excel  in  proficiency.  24.  Judgments  were  pronounced  on 
the  performances;  and  great  was  the  strife  among  us  for 
distinction;  but  to  take  the  lead  of  the  class  was  by  far 
the  greatest  honor.  Nor  was  sentence  given  on  our  merits 
only  once;  the  thirtieth  day  brought  the  vanquished  an 
opportunity  of  contending  again.  Thus  he  who  was  most 
successful,  did  not  relax  his  efforts,  while  uneasiness  incited 
the  unsuccessful  to  retrieve  his  honor.  25.  I  should  be 
inclined  to  maintain,  as  far  as  I  can  form  a  judgment  from 
what  I  conceive  in  my  own  mind,  that  this  method  furnished 
stronger  incitements  to  the  study  of  eloquence,  than  the 
exhortations  of  preceptors,  the  watchfulness  of  padagogi, 
or  the  wishes  of  parents. 

26.  But  as  emulation  is  of  use  to  those  who  have  made 
some  advancement  in  learning,  so,  to  those  who  are  but 
beginning,  and  are  still  of  tender  age,  to  imitate  their  school- 
fellows is  more  pleasant  than  to  imitate  their  master,  for 
the  very  reason  that  it  is  more  easy;  for  they  who  are 
learning  the  first  rudiments  will  scarcely  dare  to  exalt  them- 
selves to  the  hope  of  attaining  that  eloquence  which  they 
regard  as  the  highest ;  they  will  rather  fix  on  what  is  near- 
est to  them,  as  vines  attached  to  a  tree  gain  the  top  by 
taking  hold  of  the  lower  branches  first.  27.  This  is  an 
observation  of  such  truth,  that  it  is  the  care  even  of  the 
master  himself,  when  he  has  to  instruct  minds  that  are  still 
unformed,  not  (if  he  prefer  at  least  the  useful  to  the  showy) 
to  overburden  the  weakness  of  his  scholars,  but  to  moderate 
his  strength,  and  to  let  himself  down  to  the  capacity  of  the 
learner.  28.  For  as  narrow-necked  vessels  reject  a  great 
quantity  of  the  liquid  that  is  poured  upon  them,  but  are 
filled  by  that  which  flows  or  is  poured  into  them  by  degrees, 
so  it  is  for  us  to  ascertain  how  much  the  minds  of  boys  can 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"       119 

receive,  since  what  is  too  much  for  their  grasp  of  intellect 
will  not  enter  their  minds,  as  not  being  sufficiently  expanded 
to  admit  it.  29.  It  is  of  advantage  therefore  for  a  boy  to 
have  school-fellows  whom  he  may  first  imitate,  and  after- 
wards try  to  surpass.  Thus  will  he  gradually  conceive  hope 
of  higher  excellence. 

To  these  observations  I  shall  add,  that  masters  them- 
selves, when  they  have  but  one  pupil  at  a  time  with  them, 
cannot  feel  the  same  degree  of  energy  and  spirit  in  ad- 
dressing him,  as  when  they  are  excited  by  a  large  number 
of  hearers.  30.  Eloquence  depends  in  a  great  degree  on 
the  state  of  the  mind,  which  must  conceive  images  of 
objects,  and  transform  itself,  so  to  speak,  to  the  nature  of 
the  things  of  which  we  discourse.  Besides,  the  more  noble 
and  lofty  a  mind  is,  by  the  more  powerful  springs,  as  it 
were,  is  it  moved,  and  accordingly  is  both  strengthened  by 
praise,  and  enlarged  by  effort,  and  is  filled  with  joy  at 
achieving  something  great.  31.  But  a  certain  secret  dis- 
dain is  felt  at  lowering  the  power  of  eloquence,  acquired  by 
so  much  labor,  to  one  auditor ;  and  the  teacher  is  ashamed 
to  raise  his  style  above  the  level  of  ordinary  conversation. 
Let  any  one  imagine,  indeed,  the  air  of  a  man  haranguing, 
or  the  voice  of  one  entreating,  the  gesture,  the  pronuncia- 
tion, the  agitation  of  mind  and  body,  the  exertion,  and,  to 
mention  nothing  else,  the  fatigue,  while  he  has  but  one 
auditor;  would  not  he  seem  to  be  affected  with  something 
like  madness?  There  would  be  no  eloquence  in  the  world, 
if  we  were  to  speak  only  with  one  person  at  a  time. 

CHAPTER    III. 

I.  Let  him  that  is  skilled  in  teaching,  ascertain  first  of 
all,  when  a  boy  is  entrusted  to  him,  his  ability  and  disposi- 
tion. The  chief  symptom  of  ability  in  children  is  memory, 


120  QUINT1LIAN 

of  which  the  excellence  is  twofold,  to  receive  with  ease 
and  retain  with  fidelity.  The  next  symptom  is  imitation ; 
for  that  is  an  indication  of  a  teachable  disposition,  but  with 
this  provision,  that  it  express  merely  what  it  is  taught,  and 
not  a  person's  manner  or  walk,  for  instance,  or  whatever 
may  be  remarkable  for  deformity.  2.  The  boy  who  shall 
make  it  his  aim  to  raise  a  laugh  by  his  love  of  mimicry, 
will  afford  me  no  hope  of  good  capacity ;  for  he  who  is 
possessed  of  great  talent  will  be  well  disposed ;  else  I 
should  think  it  not  at  all  worse  to  be  of  a  dull,  than  of  a 
bad,  disposition;  but  he  who  is  honorably  inclined  will 
be  very  different  from  the  stupid  or  idle.  3.  Such  a  pupil 
as  I  would  have,  will  easily  learn  what  is  taught  him,  and 
will  ask  questions  about  some  things,  but  will  still  rather 
follow  than  run  on  before.  That  precocious  sort  of  talent 
scarcely  ever  comes  to  good  fruit.  4.  Such  are  those  who 
do  little  things  easily,  and,  impelled  by  impudence,  show 
at  once  all  that  they  can  accomplish  in  such  matters.  But 
they  succeed  only  in  what  is  ready  to  their  hand;  they 
string  words  together,  uttering  them  with  an  intrepid 
countenance,  not  in  the  least  discouraged  by  bashfulness; 
and  do  little  but  do  it  readily.  5.  There  is  no  real  power 
behind,  or  any  that  rests  on  deeply  fixed  roots ;  but  they 
are  like  seeds  which  have  been  scattered  on  the  surface  of 
the  ground  and  shoot  up  prematurely,  and  like  grass  that 
resembles  corn,  and  grows  yellow,  with  empty  ears,  before 
the  time  of  harvest.  Their  efforts  give  pleasure,  as  com- 
pared with  their  years ;  but  their  progress  comes  to  a 
stand  and  our  wonder  diminishes. 

6.  When  a  tutor  has  observed  these  indications,  let  him 
next  consider  how  the  mind  of  his  pupil  is  to  be  managed. 
Some  boys  are  indolent,  unless  you  stimulate  them ;  some 
are  indignant  at  being  commanded ;  fear  restrains  some, 
and  unnerves  others ;  continued  labor  forms  some ;  with 


SELECTION  FROM  "  rfj^TITUTES  OF  ORATORY"       121 


others,  hasty  efforts  succeed  better.  7.  Let  the  boy  be 
given  to  me,  whom  praise  stimulates,  whom  honor  delights, 
who  weeps  when  he  is  unsuccessful.  His  powers  must  be 
cultivated  under  the  influence  of  ambition;  reproach  will 
sting  him  to  the  quick;  honor  will  incite  him;  and  in  such 
a  boy  I  shall  never  be  apprehensive  of  indifference. 

8.  Yet  some  relaxation  is  to  be  allowed  to  all;  not  only 
because  there  is  nothing  that  can  bear  perpetual  labor, 
(and  even  those  things  that  are  without  sense  and  life  are 
unbent  by  alternate  rest,  as  it  were,  in  order  that  they  may 
preserve  their  vigor),  but  because  application  to  learning 
depends  on  the  will,  which  cannot  be  forced.  9.  Boys, 
accordingly,  when  re-invigorated  and  refreshed,  bring 
more  sprightliness  to  their  learning,  and  a  more  determined 
spirit,  which  for  the  most  part  spurns  compulsion.  10.  Nor 
will  play  in  boys  displease  me;  it  is  also  a  sign  of  vivac- 
ity; and  I  cannot  expect  that  he  who  is  always  dull  and 
spiritless  will  be  of  an  eager  disposition  in  his  studies,  when 
he  is  indifferent  even  to  that  excitement  which  is  natural 
to  his  age.  n.  There  must  however  be  bounds  set  to 
relaxation,  lest  the  refusal  of  it  beget  an  aversion  to  study, 
or  too  much  indulgence  in  it  a  habit  of  idleness.  There 
are  some  kinds  of  amusement,  too,  not  unserviceable  for 
sharpening  the  wits  of  boys,  as  when  they  contend  with 
each  other  by  proposing  all  sorts  of  questions  in  turn. 
12.  In  their  plays,  also,  their  moral  dispositions  show 
themselves  more  plainly,  supposing  that  there  is  no  age 
so  tender  that  it  may  not  readily  learn  what  is  right  and 
wrong;  and  the  tender  age  may  best  be  formed  at  a  time 
when  it  is  ignorant  of  dissimulation,  and  most  willingly 
submits  to  instructors  ;  for  you  may  break,  sooner  than 
mend,  that  which  has  hardened  into  deformity.  13.  A 
child  is  as  early  as  possible,  therefore,  to  be  admonished 
that  he  must  do  nothing  too  eagerly,  nothing  dishonestly, 


122  QUINTILIAN 

nothing  without  self-control;  and  we  must  always  keep  in 
mind  the  maxim  of  Virgil,  Adeo  in  teneris  consuescere  mul- 
tiim  cst,  "  of  so  much  importance  is  the  acquirement  of 
habit  in  the  young." 

14.  But  that  boys  should  suffer  corporal  punishment, 
though  it  be  a  received  custom,  and  Chrysippus  makes  no 
objection  to  it,  I  by  no  means  approve ;  first,  because  it  is 
a  disgrace,  and  a  punishment  for  slaves,  and  in  reality  (as 
will  be  evident  if  you  imagine  the  age  changed)  an  affront; 
secondly,  because,  if  a  boy's  disposition  be  so  abject  as 
not  to  be  amended  by  reproof,  he  will  be  hardened,  like 
the  worst  of  slaves,  even  to  stripes  and  lastly,  because,  if 
one  who  regularly  exacts  his  tasks  be  with  him,  there  will 
not  be  the  least  need  of  any  such  chastisement.  15.  At 
present,  the  negligence  of  p&dagogi  seems  to  be  made 
amends  for  in  such  a  way  that  boys  are  not  obliged  to  do 
what  is  right,  but  are  punished  whenever  they  have  not 
done  it.  Besides,  after  you  have  coerced  a  boy  with 
stripes,  how  will  you  treat  him  when  he  becomes  a  young 
man,  to  whom  such  terror  cannot  be  held  out,  and  by 
whom  more  difficult  studies  must  be  pursued?  16.  Add 
to  these  considerations,  that  many  things  unpleasant  to  be 
mentioned,  and  likely  afterwards  to  cause  shame,  often 
happen  to  boys  while  being  whipped,  under  the  influence 
of  pain  or  fear;  and  such  shame  enervates  and  depresses 
the  mind,  and  makes  them  shun  people's  sight  and  feel  a 
constant  uneasiness.  17.  If,  moreover,  there  has  been  too 
little  care  in  choosing  governors  and  tutors  of  reputable 
character,  I  am  ashamed  to  say  how  scandalously  un- 
worthy men  may  abuse  their  privilege  of  punishing,  and 
what  opportunity  also  the  terror  of  the  unhappy  children 
may  sometimes  afford  to  others.  I  will  not  dwell  upon 
this  point ;  what  is  already  understood  is  more  than  enough. 
It  will  be  sufficient  therefore  to  intimate,  that  no  man 


SELECTION  FROM  "INSTITUTES  OF  ORATORY"      123 

should  be  allowed  too  much  authority  over  an  age  so  weak 
and  so  unable  to  resist  ill-treatment. 

1 8.  I  will  now  proceed  to  show  in  what  studies  he  who 
is  to  be  so  trained  that  he  may  become  an  orator,  must  be 
instructed,  and  which  of  them  must  be  commenced  at  each 
particular  period  of  youth. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

I.  In  regard  to  the  boy  who  has  attained  facility  in 
reading  and  writing,  the  next  object  is  instruction  from 
the  grammarians.  Nor  is  it  of  importance  whether  I  speak 
of  the  Greek  or  Latin  grammarian,  though  I  am  inclined 
to  think  that  the  Greek  should  take  the  precedence. 

2.  Both   have  the   same  method.     This   profession,   then, 
distinguished  as  it  is,  most  compendiously,  into  two  parts, 
the  art  of  speaking  correctly  and  the  illustration  of  the  poets, 
carries  more  beneath  the  surface  than  it  shows  on  its  front. 

3.  For  not  only  is  the  art  of  writing  combined  with  that 
of  speaking,  but  correct  reading  also  precedes  illustration, 
and  with  all  these  is  joined  the  exercise  of  judgment,  which 
the  old  grammarians,  indeed,  used  with  such  severity,  that 
they   not   only   allowed   themselves   to    distinguish   certain 
verses  with  a  particular  mark  of  censure,  and  to  remove, 
as  spurious,  certain  books  which  had  been  inscribed  with 
false  titles,  from  their  sets,  but  even  brought  some  authors 
within  their  canon,   and   excluded  others  altogether   from 
classification.     4.     Nor  is  it  sufficient  to  have  read  the  poets 
only;  every  class  of  writers  must  be  studied,  not  simply  for 
matter,  but  for  words,  which  often  receive  their  authority 
from   writers.     Nor  can  grammar  be  complete  without  a 
knowledge  of  music,  since  the  grammarian  has  to  speak 
of  meter  and  rhythm;  nor  if  he  is  ignorant  of  astronomy, 
can  he  understand  the  poets,  who,  to  say  nothing  of  other 


124  QUINTILIAN 

matters,  so  often  allude  to  the  rising  and  setting  of  the 
stars  in  marking  the  seasons;  nor  must  he  be  unac- 
quainted with  philosophy,  both  on  account  of  numbers  of 
passages,  in  almost  all  poems,  drawn  from  the  most  ab- 
struse subtleties  of  physical  investigation,  and  also  on 
account  of  Empedocles  among  the  Greeks,  and  Varro  and 
Lucretius  among  the  Latins,  who  have  committed  the  pre- 
cepts of  philosophy  to  verse.  5.  The  grammarian  has  also 
need  of  no  small  portion  of  eloquence,  that  he  may  speak 
aptly  and  fluently  on  each  of  those  subjects  which  are  here 
mentioned.  Those  therefore  are  by  no  means  to  be  regarded 
who  deride  this  science  as  trifling  and  empty,  for  unless  it 
lays  a  sure  foundation  for  the  future  orator,  whatever 
superstructure  you  raise  will  fall ;  it  is  a  science  which  is 
necessary  to  the  young,  pleasing  to  the  old,  and  an  agree- 
able companion  in  retirement,  and  which  alone,  of  all  depart- 
ments of  learning,  has  in  it  more  service  than  show. 

Br 


VII.     PLUTARCH. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Plutarch,  the  celebrated  biographer  and  moralist,  was 
born  at  Chaeronea,  in  Boeotia  about  50  A.  D.  After  study- 
ing at  Delphi  under  a  distinguished  teacher,  he  took  up 
his  residence  in  Rome,  where  during  the  reign  of  Domitian 
he  became  a  popular  teacher  of  philosophy.  In  later  years 
the  emperor  Hadrian,  his  friend  and  pupil,  appointed  him 
magistrate  in  his  native  city,  where  he  died  about  120  A.  D. 
He  was  a  man  of  superior  native  ability  and  wide  schol- 
arship. History  and  philosophy  were  evidently  his  favorite 
studies. 

He  is  best  known  for  his  "  Parallel  Lives,"  which  has  al- 
ways enjoyed  a  high  degree  of  popularity.  The  numerous 
authorities  which  he  quotes,  show  that  his  work  is  based 
on  elaborate  research.  His  "  Morals,"  a  collection  of  phil- 
osophical and  practical  essays,  is  less  widely  known,  though 
it  contains  his  famous  treatise  "  On  Education."  Though 
the  authenticity  of  this  essay  has  been  questioned,  there  can 
be  no  reasonable  doubt  that  it  presents  the  views  of  the 
Greco-Roman  philosopher.  It  is  singularly  modern  in  tone, 
and  justly  entitles  Plutarch  to  a  place  among  the  great 
educational  thinkers  of  the  ancient  world.  Throughout  his 
admirable  discussion  it  will  be  observed  that  he  particularly 
insists  on  moral  training.  With  the  exception  of  the  two 
opening  paragraphs,  which  recommend  good  birth  and 
sobriety  in  parents,  the  essay  is  given,  with  unessential  omis- 
sions, as  it  appears  in  Bonn's  Classical  Library. 

125 


126  PLUTARCH 

SELECTION  FROM  PLUTARCH'S  "  MORALS." 

ON   EDUCATION. 

I.  To  speak  generally,  what  we  are  wont  to  say  about 
the  arts  and  sciences  is  also  true  of  moral  excellence,  for  to 
its  perfect  development  three  things  must  meet  together, 
natural  ability,  theory,  and  practice.  By  theory  I  mean 
training,  and  by  practice  working  at  one's  craft.  Now  the 
foundation  must  be  laid  in  training,  and  practice  gives 
facility,  but  perfection  is  attained  only  by  the  junction  of 
all  three.  For  if  any  one  of  these  elements  be  wanting, 
excellence  must  be  so  far  deficient.  For  natural  ability 
without  training  is  blind:  and  training  without  natural 
ability  is  defective,  and  practice  without  both  natural  ability 
and  training  is  imperfect.  For  just  as  in  farming  the  first 
requisite  is  good  soil,  next  a  good  farmer,  next  good  seed, 
so  also  here:  the  soil  corresponds  to  natural  ability,  the 
training  to  the  farmer,  the  seed  to  precepts  and  instruction. 
I  should  therefore  maintain  stoutly  that  these  three  ele- 
ments were  found  combined  in  the  souls  of  such  universally 
famous  men  as  Pythagoras,  and  Socrates,  and  Plato,  and 
of  all  who  have  won  undying  fame.  Happy  at  any  rate 
and  dear  to  the  gods  is  he  to  whom  any  deity  has  vouch- 
safed all  these  elements ! 

But  if  anyone  thinks  that  those  who  have  not  good  natural 
ability  cannot  to  some  extent  make  up  for  the  deficiencies 
of  nature  by  right  training  and  practice,  let  such  a  one  know 
that  he  is  very  wide  of  the  mark,  if  not  out  of  it  altogether. 
For  good  natural  parts  are  impaired  by  sloth ;  while  inferior 
ability  is  mended  by  training:  and  while  simple  things  escape 
the  eyes  of  the  careless,  difficult  things  are  reached  by 
painstaking.  The  wonderful  efficacy  and  power  of  long 


SELECTION  FROM  "MORALS"  127 

and  continuous  labor  you  may  see  indeed  every  day  in  the 
world  around  you.  Thus  water  continually  dropping  wears 
away  rocks :  and  iron  and  steel  are  molded  by  the  hands 
of  the  artificer:  and  chariot  wheels  bent  by  some  strain 
can  never  recover  their  original  symmetry :  and  the  crooked 
staves  of  actors  can  never  be  made  straight.  But  by  toil 
what  is  contrary  to  nature  becomes  stronger  than  even 
nature  itself. 

2.  The  next  point  to  discuss  will  be  nutrition.     In  my 
opinion  mothers  ought  to  nurse  and  suckle  their  own  chil- 
dren.    For  they  will  bring  them  up  with  more  sympathy 
and  care,  if  they  love  them  so  intimately  and,  as  the  pro- 
verb puts  it,  "  from  their  first  growing  their  nails."     Where- 
as 'the   affection   of   wet   or   dry   nurses    is    spurious   and 
counterfeit,  being  merely  for  pay.     And  nature  itself  teaches 
that  mothers  ought  themselves  to  suckle  and  rear  those  they 
have  given  birth  to.     ...     For  infancy  is  supple  and 
easily  molded,  and  what  children  learn  sinks  deeply  into 
their  souls  while  they  are  young  and  tender,  whereas  every- 
thing hard  is  softened  only  with  great  difficulty.     For  just 
as  seals  are  impressed  on  soft  wax,  so  instruction  leaves  its 
permanent  mark  on  the  minds  of  those  still  young.     And 
divine  Plato  seems  to  me  to  give  excellent  advice  to  nurses 
not  to  tell  their  children  any  kind  of  fables,  that  their  souls 
may  not  in  the  very  dawn  of  existence  be  full  of  folly  or 
corruption.     Phocylides  the  poet  also  seems  to  give  admir- 
able advice  when  he  says,  "  We  must  teach  good  habits  while 
the  pupil  is  still  a  boy." 

3.  Attention  also  must  be  given  to  this  point,  that  the 
lads  that  are  to  wait  upon  and  be  with  young  people  must 
be  first  and  foremost  of  good  morals,  and  able  to  speak 
Greek  distinctly  and  idiomatically,  that  they  may  not  by 
contact  with   foreigners  of  loose  morals  contract   any   of 
their  viciousness.     For  as  those  who  are  fond  of  quoting 


128  PLUTARCH 

proverbs  say  not  amiss,  "If  you  live  with  a  lame  man, 
you  will  learn  to  halt." 

4.  Next,  when  our  boys  are  old  enough  to  be  put  into 
the  hands  of  pedagogues,  great  care  must  be  taken  that  we 
do  not  hand  them  over  to  slaves,  or  foreigners,  or  flighty 
persons.  For  what  happens  nowadays  in  many  cases  is 
highly  ridiculous :  good  slaves  are  made  farmers,  or  sailors, 
or  merchants,  or  stewards,  or  money-lenders ;  but  if  they 
find  a  winebibbing,  greedy,  and  utterly  useless  slave,  to  him 
parents  commit  the  charge  of  their  sons,  whereas  the  good 
tutor  ought  to  be  such  a  one  as  was  Phcenix,  the  tutor  of 
Achilles.  The  point  also  which  I  am  now  going  to  speak 
about  is  of  the  utmost  importance.  The  schoolmasters  we 
ought  to  select  for  our  boys  should  be  of  blameless  life,  of 
pure  character,  and  of  great  experience.  For  a  good  train- 
ing is  the  source  and  root  of  gentlemanly  behavior.  And 
just  as  farmers  prop  up  their  trees,  so  good  schoolmasters 
prop  up  the  young  by  good  advice  and  suggestions,  that 
they  may  become  upright.  How  one  must  despise,  there- 
fore, some  fathers,  who,  whether  from  ignorance  or  inex- 
perience before  putting  the  intended  teachers  to  the  test, 
commit  their  sons  to  the  charge  of  untried  and  untested 
men.  If  they  act  so  through  inexperience  it  is  not  so 
ridiculous ;  but  it  is  to  the  remotest  degree  absurd  when, 
though  perfectly  aware  of  both  the  inexperience  and  worth- 
lessness  of  some  schoolmasters,  they  yet  entrust  their  sons 
to  them :  some  overcome  by  flattery,  others  to  gratify  friends 
who  solicit  their  favors ;  acting  just  as  if  anybody  ill  in 
body,  passing  over  the  experienced  physician,  should,  to 
gratify  his  friend,  call  him  in  and  so  throw  away  his  life; 
or  as  if  to  gratify  one's  friend  one  should  reject  the  best 
pilot  and  choose  him  instead.  Zeus  and  all  the  gods !  can 
anyone  bearing  the  sacred  name  of  father  put  obliging  a 
petitioner  before  obtaining  the  best  education  for  his  sons? 


SELECTION  FROM  "MORALS"  129 

Were  they  not  then  wise  words  that  the  time-honored  Socra- 
tes used  to  utter  and  say  that  he  would  proclaim,  if  he 
could,  climbing  up  to  the  highest  part  of  the  city,  "  Men, 
what  can  you  be  thinking  of,  who  move  heaven  and  earth 
to  make  money  while  you  bestow  next  to  no  attention  on 
the  sons  you  are  going  to  leave  that  money  to  ?  "  *  I  would 
add  to  this  that  such  fathers  act  very  similarly  to  a  person 
who  should  be  very  careful  about  his  shoe  but  care  nothing 
about  his  foot.  Many  persons  also  are  so  niggardly  about 
their  children,  and  indifferent  to  their  interests,  that  for  the 
sake  of  a  paltry  saving,  they  prefer  worthless  teachers  for 
their  children,  practicing  a  vile  economy  at  the  expense  of 
their  children's  ignorance.  Apropos  of  this,  Aristippus  on 
one  occasion  rebuked  an  empty-headed  parent  neatly  and 
wittily.  For  being  asked  how  much  money  a  parent  ought 
to  pay  for  his  son's  education,  he  answered,  "  A  thousand 
drachmae."  And  he  replying,  "Hercules,  what  a  price!  I 
could  buy  a  slave  for  as  much ;  "  Aristippus  answered,  "  You 
shall  have  two  slaves  then,  your  son  and  the  slave  you  buy." 
And  is  it  not  altogether  strange  that  you  accustom  your 
son  to  take  his  food  in  his  right  hand,  and  chide  him  if  he 
offers  his  left,  whereas  you  care  very  little  about  his  hearing 
good  and  sound  discourses?  I  will  tell  you  what  happens 
to  such  admirable  fathers,  when  they  have  educated  and 
brought  up  their  sons  so  badly :  when  the  sons  grow  to 
man's  estate,  they  disregard  a  sober  and  well-ordered  life, 
and  rush  headlong  into  disorderly  and  low  vices ;  then  at 
the  last  the  parents  are  sorry  they  have  neglected  their 
education,  bemoaning  bitterly  when  it  is  too  late  their  sons' 
debasement. 

5.  I  say,  then,  to  speak  comprehensively  (and  I  might 
be  justly  considered  in  so  saying  to  speak  as  an  oracle, 
not  to  be  delivering  a  mere  precept),  that  a  good  education 

1  Plato,  "  Clitophon." 
PAINTER   PED.   Ess. — •  9 


I3o  PLUTARCH 

and  sound  bringing-up  is  of  the  first  and  middle  and  last 
importance;  and  I  declare  it  to  be  most  instrumental  and 
conducive  to  virtue  and  happiness.  For  all  other  human 
blessings  compared  to  this  are  petty  and  insignificant.  For 
noble  birth  is  a  great  honor,  but  it  is  an  advantage  from  our 
forefathers.  And  wealth  is  valuable,  but  it  is  the  acquisition 
of  Fortune,  who  has  often  taken  it  away  from  those  who 
had  it,  and  brought  it  to  those  who  little  expected  it;  and 
much  wealth  is  a  sort  of  mark  for  villainous  slaves  and 
informers  to  shoot  at  to  fill  their  own  purses;  and  what  is 
a  most  important  point,  even  the  greatest  villains  have 
money  sometimes.  And  glory  is  noble,  but  insecure.  And 
beauty  is  highly  desirable,  but  shortlived.  And  health  is 
highly  valuable,  but  soon  impaired.  And  strength  is  de- 
sirable, but  illness  or  age  soon  makes  sad  inroads  into  it. 
And  generally  speaking,  if  any  one  prides  himself  on  his 
bodily  strength,  let  him  know  that  he  is  deficient  in  judg- 
ment. For  how  much  inferior  is  the  strength  of  a  man 
to  that  of  animals,  as  elephants,  bulls,  and  lions !  But  edu- 
cation is  of  all  our  advantages  the  only  one  immortal  and 
divine.  And  two  of  the  most  powerful  agencies  in  man's 
nature  are  mind  and  reason.  And  mind  governs  reason, 
and  reason  obeys  mind ;  and  mind  is  irremovable  by  for- 
tune, cannot  be  taken  away  by  informers,  cannot  be  de- 
stroyed by  disease,  cannot  have  inroads  made  into  it  by  old 
age.  For  the  mind  alone  flourishes  in  age;  and  while  time 
takes  away  everything  else,  it  adds  wisdom  to  old  age. 
Even  war,  that  sweeps  away  everything  else  like  a  winter 
torrent,  cannot  take  away  education. 

6.  And  as  I  advise  parents  to  think  nothing  more  im- 
portant than  the  education  of  their  children,  so  I  maintain 
that  it  must  be  a  sound  and  healthy  education,  and  that 
our  sons  must  be  kept  as  far  as  possible  from  vulgar 
twaddle.  For  what  pleases  the  vulgar  displeases  the  wise. 


SELECTION  FROM  " MORALS"  131 

I  am  borne  out  by  the  lines  of  Euripides,  "  Unskilled  am  I 
in  the  oratory  that  pleases  the  mob;  but  amongst  the  few 
that  are  my  equals  I  am  reckoned  rather  wise.  For  those 
who  are  little  thought  of  by  the  wise,  seem  to  hit  the  taste 
of  the  vulgar." x  And  I  have  myself  noticed  that  those 
who  practice  to  speak  acceptably  and  to  the  gratification 
of  the  masses  promiscuously,  for  the  most  part  become  also 
profligate  and  lovers  of  pleasure  in  their  lives.  Naturally 
enough.  For  if  in  giving  pleasure  to  others  they  neglect 
the  noble,  they  would  be  hardly  likely  to  put  the  lofty 
and  sound  above  a  life  of  luxury  and  pleasure,  and  to 
prefer  moderation  to  delights.  Yet  what  better  advice  could 
we  give  our  sons  than  to  follow  this?  or  to  what  could 
we  better  exhort  them  to  accustom  themselves?  For  per- 
fection is  only  attained  by  neither  speaking  nor  acting  at 
random  —  as  the  proverb  says,  Perfection  is  only  attained 
by  practice.  Whereas  extempore  oratory  is  easy  and  facile, 
mere  windbag,  having  neither  beginning  nor  end.  And 
besides  their  other  shortcomings  extempore  speakers  fall 
into  great  disproportion  and  repetition,  whereas  a  well  con- 
sidered speech  preserves  its  due  proportions.  It  is  recorded 
by  tradition  that  Pericles,  when  called  on  by  the  people 
for  a  speech,  frequently  refused  on  the  plea  that  he  was 
unprepared.  Similarly  Demosthenes,  his  state-rival,  when 
the  Athenians  called  upon  him  for  his  advice,  refused  to 
give  it,  saying,  "  I  am  not  prepared."  But  this  you  will 
say,  perhaps,  is  mere  tradition  without  authority.  But  in 
his  speech  against  Midias  he  plainly  sets  forth  the  utility 
of  preparation,  for  he  says,  "  I  do  not  deny,  men  of  Athens, 
that  I  have  prepared  this  speech  to  the  best  of  my  ability: 
for  I  should  have  been  a  poor  creature  if,  after  suffering  so 
much  at  his  hands,  and  even  still  suffering,  I  had  neglected 
how  to  plead  my  case."  Not  that  I  would  altogether  reject 

1 "  Hippolytus,"  986—989. 


132  PLUTARCH 

extempore  oratory,  or  its  use  in  critical  cases,  but  it  should 
be  used  only  as  one  would  take  medicine.  Up,  indeed,  to 
man's  estate  I  would  have  no  extempore  speaking,  but 
when  anyone's  powers  of  speech  are  rooted  and  grounded, 
then,  as  emergencies  call  for  it,  I  would  allow  his  words 
to  flow  freely.  For  as  those  who  have  been  for  a  long 
time  in  fetters  stumble  if  unloosed,  not  being  able  to  walk 
from  being  long  used  to  their  fetters,  so  those  who  for  a 
long  time  have  used  compression  in  their  words,  if  they 
are  suddenly  called  upon  to  speak  off-hand,  retain  the  same 
character  of  expression.  But  to  let  mere  lads  speak  ex- 
tempore is  to  give  rise  to  the  acme  of  foolish  talk.  A 
wretched  painter  once  showed  Apelles,  they  say,  a  picture, 
and  said,  "  I  have  just  done  it."  Apelles  replied,  "  With 
out  your  telling  me,  I  should  know  it  was  painted  quickly ; 
I  only  wonder  you  haven't  painted  more  such  in  the  time." 
As  then  (for  I  now  return  from  my  digression),  I  advise 
to  avoid  stilted  and  bombastic  language,  so  again  do  I  urge 
to  avoid  a  finical  and  petty  style  of  speech ;  for  tall  talk  is 
unpopular,  and  petty  language  makes  no  impression.  And 
as  the  body  ought  to  be  not  only  sound  but  in  good  condi- 
tion, so  speech  ought  to  be  not  only  not  feeble  but  vigorous. 
For  a  safe  mediocrity  is  indeed  praised,  but  a  bold  venture- 
someness  is  also  admired.  I  am  also  of  the  same  opinion 
with  regard  to  the  disposition  of  the  soul,  which  ought  to 
be  neither  audacious  nor  timid  and  easily  dejected:  for  the 
one  ends  in  impudence  and  the  other  in  servility ;  but  to 
keep  in  all  things  the  mean  between  extremes  is  artistic 
and  proper.  And,  while  I  am  still  on  this  topic,  I  wish  to 
give  my  opinion,  that  I  regard  a  monotonous  speech  first 
as  no  small  proof  of  want  of  taste,  next  as  likely  to  gene- 
rate disdain,  and  certain  not  to  please  long.  For  to  harp 
on  one  string  is  always  tiresome  and  brings  satiety ;  where- 
as variety  is  pleasant  always  whether  to  the  ear  or  eye. 


SELECTION  FROM  "  MORALS  "  133 

7.  Next  our  freeborn  lad  ought  to  go  in  for  a  course 
of  what  is  called  general  knowledge,  but  a  smattering  of 
this  will  be  sufficient,  a  taste  as  it  were  (for  perfect  know- 
ledge of  all  subjects  would  be  impossible)  ;  but  he  must 
seriously  cultivate  philosophy.  I  borrow  an  illustration  to 
show  my  meaning:  it  is  well  to  sail  round  many  cities,  but 
advantageous  to  live  in  the  best.  Philosophy,  therefore, 
ought  to  be  regarded  as  the  most  important  branch  of  study. 
For  as  regards  the  cure  of  the  body,  men  have  found  two 
branches,  medicine  and  exercise :  the  former  of  which  gives 
health,  and  the  latter  good  condition  of  body ;  but  philosophy 
is  the  only  cure  for  the  maladies  and  disorders  of  the  soul. 
For  with  her  as  ruler  and  guide  we  can  know  what  is 
honorable,  what  is  disgraceful ;  what  is  just,  what  unjust ; 
generally  speaking,  what  is  to  be  sought  after,  what  to  be 
avoided ;  how  we  ought  to  behave  to  the  gods,  to  parents, 
to  elders,  to  the  laws,  to  foreigners,  to  rulers,  to  friends, 
to  women,  to  children,  to  slaves :  viz.,  that  we  ought  to 
worship  the  gods,  honor  parents,  reverence  elders,  obey  the 
laws,  submit  ourselves  to  rulers,  love  our  friends,  be  chaste 
in  our  relations  with  women,  kind  to  our  children,  and  not 
to  treat  our  slaves  badly ;  and,  what  is  of  the  greatest  im- 
portance, to  be  neither  over  elated  in  prosperity  nor  over 
depressed  in  adversity,  nor  to  be  dissolute  in  pleasures,  nor 
fierce  and  brutish  in  anger.  These  I  regard  as  the  principal 
blessings  that  philosophy  teaches.  For  to  enjoy  prosperity 
nobly  shows  a  man;  and  to  enjoy  it  without  exciting  envy 
shows  a  moderate  man ;  and  to  conquer  the  passions  by 
reason  argues  a  wise  man ;  and  it  is  not  everybody  who  can 
keep  his  temper  in  control.  And  those  who  can  unite 
political  ability  with  philosophy  I  regard  as  perfect  men, 
for  I  take  them  to  attain  two  of  the  greatest  blessings,  serv- 
ing the  state  in  a  public  capacity,  and  living  the  calm  and 
tranquil  life  of  philosophy.  For,  as  there  are  three  kinds 


134  PLUTARCH 

of  life,  the  practical,  the  contemplative,  and  the  life  of  en- 
joyment, and  of  these  three  the  one  devoted  to  enjoyment 
is  a  paltry  and  animal  life,  and  the  practical  without  philos- 
ophy an  unlovely  and  harsh  life,  and  the  contemplative  with- 
out the  practical  a  useless  life,  so  we  must  endeavor  with  all 
our  power  to  combine  public  life  with  philosophy  as  far  as 
circumstances  will  permit.  Such  was  the  life  led  by  Peri- 
cles, by  Archytas  of  Tarentum,  by  Dion  of  Syracuse,  by 
Epaminondas  the  Theban,  one  of  whom  was  a  disciple  of 
Plato  (viz.,  Dion). 

And  as  to  education,  I  do  not  know  that  I  need  dwell  any 
more  on  it.  But  in  addition  to  what  I  have  said,  it  is 
useful,  if  not  necessary,  not  to  neglect  to  procure  old  books, 
and  to  make  a  collection  of  them,  as  is  usual  in  agriculture. 
For  the  use  of  books  is  an  instrument  in  education,  and  it 
is  profitable  in  learning  to  go  to  the  fountain  head. 

8.  Exercise  also  ougnt  not  to  be  neglected,  but  we  ought 
to  send  our  boys  to  the  master  of  the  gymnasium  to  train 
them  duly,  partly  with  a  view  to  carrying  the  body  well, 
partly  with  a  view  to  strength.  For  good  habit  of  body  in 
boys  is  the  foundation  of  a  good  old  age.  For  as  in  fine 
weather  we  ought  to  lay  up  for  winter,  so  in  youth  one 
ought  to  form  good  habits  and  live  soberly  so  as  to  have  a 
reserve  stock  of  strength  for  old  age.  Yet  ought  we  to 
husband  the  exertions  of  the  body,  so  as  not  to  be  wearied 
out  by  them  and  rendered  unfit  for  study.  For,  as  Plato 
says,  excessive  sleep  and  fatigue  are  enemies  to  learning. 

But  why  dwell  on  this  ?  For  I  am  in  a  hurry  to  pass  to  the 
most  important  point.  Our  lads  must  be  trained  for  warlike 
encounters,  making  themselves  efficient  in  hurling  the  javelin 
and  darts,  and  in  the  chase.  For  the  possessions  of  those 
who  are  defeated  in  battle  belong  to  the  conquerors  as  booty 
of  war ;  and  war  is  not  the  place  for  delicately  brought  up 
bodies:  it  is  the  spare  warrior  that  makes  the  best  com- 


SELECTION  FROM  "MORALS"  135 

batant,  who  as  an  athlete  cuts  his  way  through  the  ranks 
of  the  enemies.  Supposing  anyone  objects:  "How  so? 
As  you  undertook  to  give  advice  on.  the  education  of  free- 
born  children,  do  you  now  neglect  the  poor  and  plebeian 
ones,  and  give  instructions  only  suitable  to  the  rich  ?  "  It 
is  easy  enough  to  meet  such  critics.  I  should  prefer  to 
make  my  teaching  general  and  suitable  to  all;  but  if  any, 
through  their  poverty,  shall  be  unable  to  follow  up  my 
precepts,  let  them  blame  fortune,  and  not  the  author  of  these 
hints.  We  must  try  with  all  our  might  to  procure  the  best 
education  for  the  poor  as  well  as  the  rich,  but  if  that  is 
impossible,  then  we  must  put  up  with  the  practicable.  I 
inserted  those  matters  into  my  discourse  here,  that  I  might 
hereafter  confine  myself  to  all  that  appertains  to  the  right 
education  of  the  young. 

9.  And  this  I  say  that  we  ought  to  try  to  draw  our 
boys  to  good  pursuits  by  entreaties  and  exhortation,  but 
certainly  not  by  blows  or  abusive  language.     For  that  seems 
to  be  more  fitting  for  slaves  than  the  freeborn.     For  slaves 
try  to  shirk  and  avoid  their  work,  partly  because  of  the 
pain  of  blows,  partly  on   account  of  being  reviled.     But 
praise  or  censure  are  far  more  useful  than  abuse  to  the 
freeborn,  praise  pricking  them  on  to  virtue,  censure  deter- 
ring them  from  vice.     But  one  must  censure  and  praise  al- 
ternately :  when  they  are  too  saucy  we  must  censure  them 
and  make  them  ashamed  of  themselves,  and  again  encourage 
them  by  praise,  and  imitate  those  nurses  who,  when  their 
children  sob,  give  them  the  breast  to  comfort  them.    But  we 
must  not  puff  them  up  and  make  them  conceited  with  ex- 
cessive praise,  for  that  will  make  them  vain  and  give  them- 
selves airs. 

10.  And  I  have  ere  now  seen  some  fathers,  whose  ex- 
cessive love  for  their  children  has  turned  into  hatred.     My 
meaning  I  will  endeavor  to  make  clearer  by  illustration. 


I36  PLUTARCH 

While  they  are  in  too  great  a  hurry  to  make  their  sons  take 
the  lead  in  everything,  they  lay  too  much  work  upon  them, 
so  that  they  faint  under  their  tasks,  and,  being  overbur- 
dened, are  disinclined  for  learning.  For  just  as  plants 
grow  with  moderate  rain,  but  are  done  for  by  too  much 
rain,  so  the  mind  enlarges  by  a  proper  amount  of  work, 
but  by  too  much  is  unhinged.  We  must  therefore  give 
our  boys  remission  from  continuous  labor,  bearing  in  mind 
that  all  our  life  is  divided  into  labor  and  rest;  thus  we  find 
not  only  wake  fulness  but  sleep,  not  only  war  but  peace, 
not  only  foul  weather  but  fine  also,  not  only  working  days 
but  also  festivals.  And,  to  speak  concisely,  rest  is  the  sauce 
of  labor.  And  we  can  see  this  not  only  in  the  case  of  ani- 
mate, but  even  inanimate  things,  for  we  make  bows  and 
lyres  slack  that  we  may  be  able  to  stretch  them.  And  gen- 
erally the  body  is  preserved  by  repletion  and  evacuation,  and 
the  soul  by  rest  and  work. 

We  ought  also  to  censure  some  fathers  who,  after  en- 
trusting their  sons  to  pedagogues  and  preceptors,  neither 
see  nor  hear  how  the  teaching  is  done.  This  is  a  great 
mistake.  For  they  ought  after  a  few  days  to  test  the  prog- 
ress of  their  sons,  and  not  to  base  their  hopes  on  the  be- 
havior of  a  hireling;  and  the  preceptors  will  take  all  the 
more  pains  with  the  boys,  if  they  have  from  time  to  time  to 
give  an  account  of  their  progress.  Hence  the  propriety  of 
that  remark  of  the  groom,  that  nothing  fats  the  horse  so 
much  as  the  king's  eye. 

And  especial  attention,  in  my  opinion,  must  be  paid  to  cul- 
tivating and  exercising  the  memory  of  boys,  for  memory  is, 
as  it  were,  the  storehouse  of  learning;  and  that  was  why 
they  fabled  Mnemosyne  to  be  the  mother  of  the  Muses, 
hinting  and  insinuating  that  nothing  so  generates  and  con- 
tributes to  the  growth  of  learning  as  memory.  And  there- 
fore the  memory  must  be  cultivated,  whether  boys  have  a 


SELECTION  FROM  "MORALS"  137 

good  one  by  nature,  or  a  bad  one.  For  we  shall  so  add 
to  natural  good  parts,  and  make  up  somewhat  for  natural 
deficiencies,  so  that  the  deficient  will  be  better  than  others, 
and  the  clever  will  outstrip  themselves.  For  good  is  that 
remark  of  Hesiod,  "  If  to  a  little  you  keep  adding  a  little, 
and  do  so  frequently,  it  will  soon  be  a  lot."  And  let  not 
fathers  forget,  that  thus  cultivating  the  memory  is  not  only 
good  for  education,  but  is  also  a  great  aid  in  the  business 
of  life.  For  the  remembrance  of  past  actions  gives  a  good 
model  how  to  deal  wisely  in  future  ones. 

ii.  We  must  also  keep  our  sons  from  filthy  language. 
For,  as  Democritus  says,  language  is  the  shadow  of  action. 
They  must  also  be  taught  to  be  affable  and  courteous.  For 
as  want  of  affability  is  justly  hateful,  so  boys  will  not  be  dis- 
agreeable to  those  they  associate  with,  if  they  yield  occa- 
sionally in  disputes.  For  it  is  not  only  excellent  to  know 
how  to  conquer,  but  also  to  know  how  to  be  defeated,  when 
victory  would  be  injurious,  for  there  is  such  a  thing  as  a 
Cadmean  victory.  I  can  cite  wise  Euripides  as  a  witness 
of  the  truth  of  what  I  say,  who  says,  "  When  two  are  talk- 
ing, and  one  of  them  is  in  a  passion,  he  is  the  wiser  who 
first  gives  way." 

I  will  next  state  something  quite  as  important,  indeed, 
if  anything,  even  more  important.  That  is,  that  life  must 
be  spent  without  luxury,  the  tongue  must  be  under  control, 
so  must  the  temper  and  the  hands.  All  this  is  of  extreme 
importance,  as  I  will  show  by  examples.  To  begin  with  the 
last  case,  some  who  have  put  their  hands  to  unjust  gains, 
have  lost  all  the  fruits  of  their  former  life,  as  the  Lacedae- 
monian Gylippus,  who  was  exiled  from  Sparta  for  embez- 
zling the  public  money.  To  be  able  to  govern  the  temper 
also  argues  a  wise  man.  For  Socrates,  when  a  very  im- 
pudent and  disgusting  young  fellow  kicked  him  on  one 
occasion,  seeing  all  the  rest  of  his  class  vexed  and  impatient, 


I38  PLUTARCH 

even  to  the  point  of  wanting  to  prosecute  the  young  man, 
said,  "What!  If  a  young  ass  kicked  me  would  you  have 
me  kick  it  back  ?  "  Not  that  the  young  fellow  committed 
this  outrage  on  Socrates  with  impunity,  for  as  all  reviled 
him  and  nicknamed  him  the  kicker,  he  hung  himself.  And 
when  Aristophanes  brought  his  "  Clouds  "  on  the  stage,  and 
bespattered  Socrates  with  his  gibes  and  flouts,  and  one  of  the 
spectators  said,  "  Aren't  you  vexed,  Socrates,  at  his  exhibit- 
ing you  on  the  stage  in  this  comic  light  ?  "  he  answered,  "  Not 
I,  by  Zeus,  for  I  look  upon  the  theater  as  only  a  large  supper 
party."  Very  similar  to  this  was  the  behavior  of  Archytas 
of  Tarentum  and  Plato.  The  former,  on  his  return  from 
war,  where  he  had  been  general,  finding  his  land  neglected, 
called  his  bailiff,  and  said  to  him,  "  You  would  have  caught 
it,  had  I  not  been  very  angry."  And  Plato,  very  angry  with 
a  gluttonous  and  shameless  slave,  called  his  sister's  son 
Speusippus,  and  said,  "  Go  and  beat  him,  for  I  am  too 
angry." 

But  some  one  will  say,  these  examples  are  difficult  and 
hard  to  follow.  I  know  it.  But  we  must  try,  as  far  as 
possible,  following  these  examples,  to  avoid  ungovernable 
and  mad  rage.  For  we  cannot  in  other  respects  equal  those 
distinguished  men  in  their  ability  and  virtue,  nevertheless 
we  must,  like  initiating  priests  of  the  gods  and  torchbearers 
of  wisdom,  attempt  as  far  as  possible  to  imitate  and  nibble  at 
their  practice. 

Then,  again,  if  any  one  thinks  it  a  small  and  unimportant 
matter  to  govern  the  tongue,  another  point  I  promised  to 
touch  on,  he  is  very  far  from  the  reality.  For  silence  at  the 
proper  season  is  wisdom,  and  better  than  any  speech.  And 
that  is,  I  think,  the  reason  why  the  ancients  instituted  the 
mysteries  that  we,  learning  therein  to  be  silent,  might 
transfer  our  secrecy  from  the  gods  to  human  affairs.  And 
no  one  ever  yet  repented  of  his  silence,  while  multitudes  have 


SELECTION  FROM  " MORALS"  139 

repented  of  their  speaking.  And  what  has  not  been  said  is 
easy  to  say,  while  what  has  been  once  said  can  never  be 
recalled.  I  have  heard  of  myriads  who  have  fallen  into  the 
greatest  misfortunes  through  inability  to  govern  their 
tongues.  .  .  .  Our  boys  must  also  be  taught  to  speak  the 
truth  as  a  most  sacred  duty ;  for  to  lie  is  servile,  and  most 
hateful  in  all  men,  hardly  to  be  pardoned  even  in  poor  slaves. 

12.  And  now,  as  I  have  spoken  about  the  good  and  de- 
cent behavior  of  boys,  I  shall  change  my  subject  and  speak 
a  little  about  youths.  For  I  have  often  censured  the  intro- 
ducers of  bad  habits,  who  have  set  over  boys  pedagogues 
and  preceptors,  but  have  given  to  youths  full  liberty,  when 
they  ought,  on  the  contrary,  to  have  watched  and  guarded 
them  more  than  boys.  For  who  does  not  know  that  the 
offenses  of  boys  are  petty  and  easily  cured,  and  proceed 
from  the  carelessness  of  tutors  or  want  of  obedience  to 
preceptors ;  but  the  faults  of  young  men  are  often  grave  and 
serious,  as  gluttony,  and  robbing  their  fathers,  and  dice,  and 
revelings',  and  drinking-bouts,  and  licentiousness.  Such 
outbreaks  ought  to  be  carefully  checked  and  curbed.  For 
that  prime  of  life  is  prodigal  in  pleasure,  and  frisky,  and 
needs  a  bridle,  so  that  those  parents  who  do  not  strongly 
check  that  period,  are  foolishly,  if  unawares,  giving  their 
youths  license  for  vice.  Sensible  parents,  therefore,  ought 
during  all  that  period  to  guard  and  watch  and  restrain  their 
youths,  by  precepts,  by  threats,  by  entreaties,  by  advice,  by 
promises,  by  citing  examples,  on  the  one  hand  of  those  who 
have  come  to  ruin  by  being  too  fond  of  pleasure,  on  the  other 
hand,  of  those  who  by  their  self-control  have  attained  to 
praise  and  good  report.  For  these  are,  as  it  were,  the  two 
elements  of  virtue,  hope  of  honor,  and  fear  of  punishment ; 
the  former  inciting  to  good  practices,  the  latter  deterring 
from  bad. 

13.     We  ought,  at  all  hazards,  to  keep  our  boys  also 


I40  PLUTARCH 

from  association  with  bad  men,  for  they  will  catch  some  of 
their  villainy.  This  was  the  meaning  of  Pythagoras'  enig- 
matical precepts,  which  I  shall  quote  and  explain,  as  they 
give  no  slight  momentum  towards  the  acquisition  of  virtue : 
as,  Do  not  touch  black  tails:  that  is,  do  not  associate  with 
bad  men.  Do  not  go  beyond  the  balance:  that  is,  we  must 
pay  the  greatest  attention  to  justice  and  not  go  beyond  it. 
Do  not  sit  on  a  measure:  that  is,  do  not  be  lazy,  but  earn 
to-morrow's  bread  as  well  as  to-day's.  Do  not  give  every  one 
your  right  hand:  that  is,  do  not  be  too  ready  to  strike  up  a 
friendship.  Do  not  wear  a  tight  ring:  that  is,  let  your  life 
be  free,  do  not  bind  yourself  by  a  chain.  Do  not  poke  the 
fire  with  a  sword:  that  is,  do  not  provoke  an  angry  person, 
but  yield  to  such.  Do  not  eat  the  heart:  do  not  wear  away 
the  heart  by  anxiety.  Abstain  from  beans:  that  is,  do  not 
meddle  in  state  affairs,  for  the  voting  for  offices  was  former- 
ly taken  by  beans.  Do  not  put  your  food  in  the  mire:  that 
is,  do  not  throw  your  pearls  before  swine,  for  words  are  the 
food  of  the  mind,  and  the  villainy  of  men  twist  tHem  to  a 
corrupt  meaning.  When  you  have  come  to  the  end  of  a 
journey  do  not  look  back:  that  is,  when  people  are  going  to 
die  and  see  that  their  end  is  near,  they  ought  to  take  it 
easily  and  not  be  dejected.  But  I  will  return  from  my 
digression.  We  must  keep  our  boys,  as  I  said,  from  asso- 
ciation with  all  bad  men,  but  especially  from  flatterers. 
For,  as  I  have  often  said  to  parents,  and  still  say,  and  will 
constantly  affirm,  there  is  no  race  more  pestilential,  nor 
more  sure  to  ruin  youths  swiftly,  than  the  race  of  flatterers, 
who  destroy  both  parents  and  sons  root  and  branch,  making 
the  old  age  of  the  fme  and  the  youth  of  the  other  miserable, 
holding  out  pleasure  as  a  sure  bait.  The  sons  of  the  rich 
are  by  their  fathers  urged  to  be  sober,  but  by  them  to  be 
drunk ;  by  their  fathers  to  be  chaste,  by  them  to  wax  wanton  ; 
by  their  fathers  to  save,  by  them  to  spend ;  by  their  fathers 


SELECTION  FROM  "  MORALS  "  141 

to  be  industrious,  by  them  to  be  lazy.  For  they  say,  "  '  Our 
life's  but  a  span  ' ;  we  can  only  live  once ;  why  should  you 
heed  your  father's  threats?  he's  an  old  twaddler,  he  has  one 
foot  in  the  grave;  we  shall  soon  hoist  him  up  and  carry 
him  off  to  burial." 

14.  What  I  have  said  hitherto  is  apropos  to  my  subject : 
I  will  now  speak  a  word  to  the  men.     Parents  must  not  be 
over  harsh  and  rough  in  their  natures,  but  must  often  forgive 
their  sons'  offenses,  remembering  that  they  themselves  were 
once  young.     And  just  as  doctors  by  infusing  a  sweet  flavor 
into  their  bitter  potions  find  delight  a  passage  to  benefit,  so 
fathers  must  temper  the  severity  of  their  censure  by  mild- 
ness ;  and  sometimes  relax  and  slacken  the  reins  of  their 
sons'  desires,  and  again  tighten  them ;  and  must  be  especially 
easy  in  respect  to  their  faults,  or  if  they  are  angry  must  soon 
cool  down.     For  it  is  better  for  a  father  to  be  hot-tempered 
than  sullen,  for  to  continue  hostile  and  irreconcilable  looks 
like  hating  one's  son.     And  it  is  good  to  seem  not  to  notice 
some  faults,  but  to  extend  to  them  the  weak  sight  and  deaf- 
ness of  old  age,  so  as  seeing  not  to  see,  and  hearing  not  to 
hear,  their  doings.     We  tolerate  the  faults  of  our  friends; 
why  should  we  not  that  of  our   sons?     Often   even  our 
slaves'  drunken  debauches  we  do  not  expose.     Have  you 
been   rather  near?     Spend   more   freely.     Have   you   been 
vexed?     Let  the  matter  pass.     Has  your  son  deceived  you 
by  the  help  of  a  slave?     Do  not  be  angry.     Did  he  take  a 
yoke  of  oxen  from  the  field,  did  he  come  home  smelling  of 
yesterday's   debauch?     Wink  at  it.     Is   he   scented  like  a 
perfume    shop?     Say    nothing.     Thus    frisky    youth    gets 
broken  in. 

15.  Those  of  our  sons  who  are  given  to  pleasure  and 
pay  little  heed  to  rebuke,  we  must  endeavor  to  marry,  for 
marriage  is  the  surest  restraint  upon  youth.     And  we  must 
marry  our  sons  to  wives  not  much  richer  or  better  born,  for 


142  PLUTARCH 

the  proverb  is  a  sound  one,  "  Marry  in  your  own  walk  of 
life."  For  those  who  marry  wives  superior  to  themselves  in 
rank  are  not  so  much  the  husbands  of  their  wives  as  un- 
awares slaves  to  their  dowries. 

1 6.  I  shall  add  a  few  remarks,  and  then  bring  my  sub- 
ject to  a  close.  Before  all  things  fathers  must,  by  a  good 
behavior,  set  a  good  example  to  their  sons,  that,  looking 
at  their  lives  as  a  mirror,  they  may  turn  away  from  bad 
deeds  and  words.  For  those  fathers  who  censure  their  sons' 
faults  while  they  themselves  commit  the  same,  are  really 
their  own  accusers,  if  they  know  it  not,  under  their  sons' 
name;  and  those  who  live  a  depraved  life  have  no  right  to 
censure  their  slaves,  far  less  their  sons.  And  besides  this 
they  will  become  counselors  and  teachers  of  their  sons  in 
wrongdoing;  for  where  old  men  are  shameless,  youths  will 
of  a  certainty  have  no  modesty.  We  must  therefore  take  all 
pains  to  teach  our  sons  self-control,  emulating  the  conduct 
of  Eurydice,  who,  though  an  Illyrian  and  more  than  a  bar- 
barian, to  teach  her  sons  educated  herself  though  late  in  life, 
and  her  love  to  them  is  well  depicted  in  the  inscription  which 
she  offered  to  the  Muses :  "  Eurydice  of  Hierapolis  made 
this  offering  to  the  Muses,  having  conceived  a  vast  love  for 
knowledge.  For  when  a  mother  with  sons  full-grown  she 
learnt  letters,  the  preservers  of  knowledge." 

To  carry  out  all  these  precepts  would  be  perhaps  a  vision- 
ary scheme;  but  to  attain  to  many,  though  it  would  need 
a  happy  disposition  and  much  care,  is  a  thing  possible  to 
human  nature. 


VIII.    JEROME. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Jerome,  who  was  born  at  Stridon  on  the  border-line  be- 
tween Dalmatia  and  Pannonia  about  340  A.  D.,  is  regarded 
as  the  most  learned  of  the  Latin  Fathers.  After  receiving 
an  elementary  education  under  his  father,  who  was  a  Chris- 
tian, he  studied  rhetoric  and  philosophy  at  Rome,  where 
in  360  he  was  also  admitted  to  the  Church  by  baptism.  A 
few  years  later  a  serious  illness  at  Antioch  deepened  his 
religious  fervor  and  he  withdrew  into  the  desert  to  lead 
a  life  of  asceticism.  After  four  years  of  ascetic  life  he 
returned  to  Antioch,  where  in  379  he  was  ordained  a 
presbyter.  He  afterwards  studied  under  Gregory  Nazian- 
zen  at  Constantinople,  and  later  sojourned  in  Rome  till  the 
year  385.  Here  he  worked  on  his  famous  translation  of  the 
Bible,  now  known  as  the  Vulgate,  and  at  the  same  time 
attained  to  great  popularity  by  his  sanctity  and  eloquence. 
He  gathered  a  company  of  Christian  women  about  him  for 
religious  instruction,  among  whom  were  the  lady  Paula 
and  her  daughter  Eustochium.  He  was  accompanied  by 
them  on  a  pilgrimage  to  the  Holy  Land  and  when  Paula 
had  founded  several  convents  at  Bethlehem  for  nuns  and 
monks,  he  fixed  his  permanent  residence  there.  It  was  in 
monastic  retirement  in  the  town  of  the  nativity  that  Jerome 
completed  the  great  literary  labors  of  his  life,  and  wrote 
the  important  letters  and  controversial  treatises  that  com- 
pose so  large  a  part  of  his  published  works. 

The  following  extract  is  his  famous  letter  to  Laeta  about 


144  JEROME 

the  education  of  her  little  daughter  Paula.  It  was  written 
in  403,  and,  as  would  naturally  be  expected,  is  pervaded  by 
the  ascetic  spirit  of  the  author  and  of  the  age  in  which  he 
lived.  Doubting  whether  the  details  of  the  child's  train- 
ing, as  he  had  proposed  them,  could  be  carried  out  in  Rome, 
he  advises  Laeta,  in  case  of  difficulty,  to  send  Paula  to 
the  convent  at  Bethlehem,  where  she  would  be  under  the 
care  of  her  grandmother,  the  elder  Paula,  and  of  her  aunt 
Eustochium.  Acting  upon  Jerome's  advice  Laeta  subse- 
quently sent  her  daughter  to  Bethlehem,  where  she  even- 
tually succeeded  Eustochium  as  head  of  the  nunnery  founded 
by  her  grandmother. 

JEROME'S  LETTER  TO  LAETA. 

Thus  must  a  soul  be  educated  which  is  to  be  a  temple 
of  God.  It  must  learn  to  hear  nothing  and  to  say  nothing 
but  what  belongs  to  the  fear  of  God.  It  must  have  no 
understanding  of  unclean  words,  and  no  knowledge  of  the 
world's  songs.  Its  tongue  must  be  steeped  while  still 
tender  in  the  sweetness  of  the  Psalms.  Boys  with  their 
wanton  thoughts  must  be  kept  from  Paula :  even  her  maids 
and  female  attendants  must  be  separated  from  worldly 
associates.  For  if  they  have  learned  some  mischief  they 
may  teach  more. 

Get  for  her  a  set  of  letters  made  of  boxwood  or  of  ivory 
and  called  each  by  its  proper  name.  Let  her  play  with  these, 
so  that  even  her  play  may  teach  her  something.  And  not 
only  make  her  grasp  the  right  order  of  the  letters  and  see 
that  she  forms  their  names  into  a  rhyme,  but  constantly 
disarrange  their  order  and  put  the  last  letters  in  the  middle 
and  the  middle  ones  at  the  beginning  that  she  may  know 
them  all  by  sight  as  well  as  by  sound. 

Moreover,  so  soon  as  she  begins  to  use  the  style  upon  the 


LETTER  TO  LAETA  145 

wax,  and  her  hand  is  still  faltering,  either  guide  her  soft 
fingers  by  laying  your  hand  upon  hers,  or  else  have  simple 
copies  cut  upon  a  tablet ;  so  that  her  efforts  confined  within 
these  limits  may  keep  to  the  lines  traced  out  for  her  and 
not  stray  outside  of  these.  Offer  prizes  for  good  spelling 
and  draw  her  onwards  with  little  gifts  such  as  children  of 
her  age  delight  in. 

And  let  her  have  companions  in  her  lessons  to  excite 
emulation  in  her,  that  she  may  be  stimulated  when  she  sees 
them  praised.  You  must  not  scold  her  if  she  is  slow  to  learn 
but  must  employ  praise  to  excite  her  mind,  so  that  she  may 
be  glad  when  she  excels  others  and  sorry  when  she  is  ex- 
celled by  them.  Above  all  you  must  take  care  not  to  make 
her  lessons  distasteful  to  her,  lest  a  dislike  for  them  con- 
ceived in  childhood  may  continue  into  her  maturer  years. 
The  very  words  which  she  tries  bit  by  bit  to  put  together 
and  to  pronounce  ought  not  to  be  chance  ones,  but  names 
specially  fixed  upon  and  heaped  together  for  the  purpose, 
those  for  example  of  the  prophets  or  the  apostles  or  the 
list  of  patriarchs  from  Adam  downwards,  as  it  is  given 
by  Matthew  and  Luke.  In  this  way  while  her  tongue  will  be 
well  trained,  her  memory  will  be  likewise  developed. 

Again,  you  must  choose  for  her  a  master  of  approved 
years,  life,  and  learning.  A  man  of  culture  will  not,  I  think, 
blush  to  do  for  a  kinswoman  or  a  high-born  virgin  what 
Aristotle  did  for  Philip's  son  when,  descending  to  the  level 
of  an  usher,  he  consented  to  teach  him  his  letters.  Things 
must  not  be  despised  as  of  small  account  in  the  absence  of 
which  great  results  can  not  be  achieved.  The  very  rudi- 
ments and  first  beginnings  of  knowledge  sound  differently  in 
the  mouth  of  an  educated  man  and  of  an  uneducated. 
Accordingly  you  must  see  that  the  child  is  not  led  away  by 
the  silly  coaxing  of  women  to  form  a  habit  of  shortening 
long  words  or  of  decking  herself  with  gold  and  purple.  Of 

PAINTER  FED.   Ess. —  10 


146  JEROME 

these  habits  one  will  spoil  her  conversation  and  the  other  her 
character.  She  must  not  therefore  learn  as  a  child  what 
afterwards  she  will  have  to  unlearn. 

The  eloquence  of  the  Gracchi  is  said  to  have  been  largely 
due  to  the  way  in  which  from  their  earliest  years  their 
mother  spoke  to  them.  Hortensius  became  an  orator  while 
still  on  his  father's  lap.  Early  impressions  are  hard  to 
eradicate  from  the  mind.  When  once  wool  has  been  dyed 
purple,  who  can  restore  it  to  its  previous  whiteness?  An 
unused  jar  long  retains  the  taste  and  smell  of  that  with 
which  it  is  first  filled.  Grecian  history  tells  us  that  the 
imperious  Alexander,  who  was  lord  of  the  whole  world,  could 
not  rid  himself  of  the  tricks  of  manner  and  gait  which  in  his 
childhood  he  had  caught  from  his  governor  Leonidas.  We 
a're  always  ready  to  imitate  what  is  evil;  and  faults  are 
quickly  copied  where  virtues  appear  inattainable.  Paula's 
nurse  must  not  be  intemperate,  or  loose,  or  given  to  gossip. 
Her  bearer  must  be  respectable,  and  her  foster-father  of 

grave  demeanor. 

***** 

Let  her  very  dress  and  garb  remind  her  to  Whom  she 
is  promised.  Do  not  pierce  her  ears  or  paint  her  face,  con- 
secrated to  Christ,  with  white  lead  or  rouge.  Do  not  hang 
gold  or  pearls  about  her  neck  or  load  her  head  with  jewels, 
or  by  reddening  her  hair  make  it  suggest  the  fires  of  Ge- 
henna. 

***** 

When  Paula  comes  to  be  a  little  older  and  to  increase 
like  her  Spouse  in  wisdom  and  stature  and  in  favor  with 
God  and  man,  let  her  go  with  her  parents  to  the  temple  of 
her  true  Father  but  let  her  not  come  out  of  the  temple 
with  them.  Let  them  seek  her  upon  the  world's  highway 
amid  the  crowds  and  the  throng  of  their  kinsfolk,  and  let 
them  find  her  nowhere  but  in  the  shrine  of  the  Scriptures, 


LETTER  TO  LAETA  147 

questioning  the  prophets  and  the  apostles  on  the  meaning 
of  that  spiritual  marriage  to  which  she  is  vowed.  Let  her 
imitate  the  retirement  of  Mary  whom  Gabriel  found  alone  in 
her  chamber. 

***** 

And  let  it  be  her  daily  task  to  bring  you  the  flowers 
which  she  has  culled  from  Scripture.  Let  her  learn  by 
heart  so  many  verses  in  the  Greek,  but  let  her  be  instructed 
in  the  Latin  also.  For,  if  the  tender  lips  are  not  from  the 
first  shaped  to  this,  the  tongue  is  spoiled  by  a  foreign  accent 
and  its  native  speech  debased  by  alien  elements.  You  must 
yourself  be  her  mistress,  a  model  on  which  she  may  form 
her  childish  conduct.  Never  either  in  you  or  in  her  father 
let  her  see  what  she  can  not  imitate  without  sin.  Remem- 
ber both  of  you  that  you  are  the  parents  of  a  consecrated 
virgin,  and  that  your  example  will  teach  her  more  than  your 
precepts. 

Flowers  are  quick  to  fade,  and  a  baleful  wind  soon  withers 
the  violet,  the  lily,  and  the  crocus.  Let  her  never  appear 
in  public  unless  accompanied  by  you.  Let  her  never  visit 
a  church  or  martyr's  shrine  unless  with  her  mother.  Let 
no  young  man  greet  her  with  smiles,  no  dandy  with  curled 
hair  pay  compliments  to  her.  If  our  little  virgin  goes  to 
keep  solemn  eves  and  all-night  vigils,  let  her  not  stir  a 
hair's  breadth  from  her  mother's  side. 

She  must  not  single  out  one  of  her  maids  to  make  her  a 
special  favorite  or  a  confidante.  What  she  says  to  one  all 
ought  to  know.  Let  her  choose  for  a  companion  not  a 
handsome  well-dressed  girl, .  able  to  warble  a  song  with 
liquid  notes,  but  one  pale  and  serious,  sombrely  attired  and 
with  the  hue  of  melancholy.  Let  her  take  as  her  model 
some  aged  virgin  of  approved  faith,  character,  and  chastity, 
apt  to  instruct  her  by  word  and  by  example. 

She  ought  to  rise  at  night  to  recite  prayers  and  psalms; 


148  JEROME 

to  sing  hymns  in  the  morning;  at  the  third,  sixth,  and 
ninth  hours  to  take  her  place  in  the  line  to  do  battle  for 
Christ;  and,  lastly,  to  kindle  her  lamp  and  to  offer  her 
evening  sacrifice.  In  these  occupations  let  her  pass  the  day, 
and  when  night  comes  let  it  find  her  still  engaged  in  them. 
Let  reading  follow  prayer  with  her,  and  prayer  again  suc- 
ceed to  reading.  Time  will  seem  short  when  employed  on 
tasks  so  many  and  so  varied. 

Let  her  learn,  too,  how  to  spin  wool,  to  hold  the  distaff, 
to  put  the  basket  in  her  lap,  to  turn  the  spinning  wheel 
and  to  shape  the  yarn  with  her  thumb.  Let  her  put  away 
with  disdain  silken  fabrics,  Chinese  fleeces,  and  gold  bro- 
cades ;  the  clothing  which  she  makes  for  herself  should  keep 
out  the  cold  and  not  expose  the  body  which  it  professes  to 
cover.  Let  her  food  be  herbs  and  wheaten  bread,  with 
now  and  then  one  or  two  small  fishes.  And  that  I  may  not 
waste  more  time  in  giving  precepts  for  the  regulation  of 
appetite,  let  her  meals  always  leave  her  hungry  and  able 
on  the  moment  to  begin  reading  or  chanting.  I  strongly 
disapprove  —  especially  for  those  of  tender  years  —  of  long 
and  immoderate  fasts  in  which  week  is  added  to  week,  and 
even  oil  and  apples  are  forbidden  as  food.  I  have  learned 
by  experience  that  the  ass  toiling  along  the  highway  makes 
for  an  inn  when  it  is  weary. 

***** 

Let  her  treasures  be  not  silks  or  gems,  but  manuscripts 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures;  and  in  these  let  her  think  less  of 
gilding,  and  Babylonian  parchment,  and  arabesque  patterns, 
than  of  correctness  and  accurate  punctuation.  Let  her  begin 
by  learning  the  Psalter,  and  then  let  her  gather  rules  of  life 
out  of  the  proverbs  of  Solomon.  From  the  Preacher  let 
her  gain  the  habit  of  despising  the  world  and  its  vanities. 
Let  her  follow  the  example  set  in  Job  of  virtue  and  patience. 
Then  let  her  pass  on  to  the  Gospels,  never  to  be  laid  aside 


LETTER  TO  LAETA  149 

when  once  they  have  been  taken  in  hand.  Let  her  also 
drink  in  with  a  willing  heart  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  and 
the  Epistles.  As  soon  as  she  has  enriched  the  storehouse  of 
her  mind  with  these  treasures,  let  her  commit  to  memory 
the  prophets,  the  heptateuch,  the  books  of  Kings  and  of 
Chronicles,  the  rolls  also  of  Ezra  and  Esther.  When  she 
has  done  all  these  she  may  safely  read  the  Song  of  Songs, 
but  not  before:  for,  were  she  to  read  it  at  the  beginning, 
she  would  fail  to  perceive  that,  though  it  is  written  in  fleshly 
words,  it  is  a  marriage  song  of  a  spiritual  bridal.  And  not 
understanding  this  she  would-'  suffer  hurt  from  it. 
Cyprian's  writings  let  her  have  always  in  her  hands.  The 
letters  of  Athanasius  and  the  treatises  of  Hilary  she  may 
go  through  without  fear  of  stumbling.  Let  her  take  pleas- 
ure in  the  works  and  wits  of  all  in  whose  books  a  due  regard 
for  the  faith  is  not  neglected.  But  if  she  reads  the  works  of 
others,  let  it  be  rather  to  judge  them  than  to  follow  them. 

You  will  answer,  "  How  shall  I,  a  woman  of  the  world, 
living  at  Rome,  surrounded  by  a  crowd,  be  able  to  observe 
all  these  injunctions?"  In  that  case  do  not  undertake  a 
burthen  to  which  you  are  not  equal.  When  you  have 
weaned  Paula  as  Isaac  was  weaned,  and  when  you  have 
clothed  her  as  Samuel  was  clothed,  send  her  to  her  grand- 
mother and  aunt ;  give  up  this  most  precious  of  gems,  to  be 
placed  in  Mary's  chamber  and  to  rest  in  the  cradle  where 
the  infant  Jesus  cried.  Let  her  be  brought  up  in  a  monas- 
tery, let  her  be  one  amid  companies  of  virgins,  let  her  learn 
to  avoid  swearing,  let  her  regard  lying  as  sacrilege,  let  her  be 
ignorant  of  the  world,  let  her  live  the  angelic  life,  while  in 
the  flesh  let  her  be  without  the  flesh,  and  let  her  suppose  that 
all  human  beings  are  like  herself. 


IX.    APOSTOLICAL  CONSTITUTIONS. 
HISTORICAL  SKETCH. 

The  Apostolical  Constitutions,  consisting  of  eight  books, 
is  a  very  ancient  compilation,  which  was  designed  as  a 
manual  of  instruction  in- Christian  conduct,  worship,  and 
usage  for  both  clergy  and  laity.  Its  name  is  due  to  the  old 
belief  or  assumption  that  it  originated  with  the  Apostles. 
Not  all  parts  of  the  Constitutions  are  of  the  same  age.  It 
is  generally  agreed  that  the  entire  compilation  is  to  be  dated 
not  later  than  the  fourth  century.  It  is,  therefore,  a  docu- 
ment of  great  value  in  giving  us  an  understanding  of  the 
spirit,  organization,  and  usages  of  the  Church  in  the  age 
of  Constantine.  The  Constitutions  treat  of  education  in 
three  passages,  which  present  the  attitude  of  the  Church 
to  pagan  literature,  to  the  training  of  children,  and  to  the 
instruction  of  catechumens.  These  passages,  which  are 
given  in  full,  are  taken  from  the  Anti-Nicene  Fathers. 


SELECTIONS  FROM  THE  "APOSTOLICAL  CONSTITU- 
TIONS." 

I.       WHAT  BOOKS  OF  SCRIPTURE  WE  OUGHT  TO  READ. 

V.  Or  if  thou  stayest  at  home,  read  the  books  of  the 
Law,  of  the  Kings,  with  the  Prophets,  sing  the  hymns  of 
David;  and  peruse  diligently  the  Gospel,  which  is  the  com- 
pletion of  the  other. 

150 


"APOSTOLICAL  CONSTITUTIONS"  151 


That  we  ought  to  abstain  from  all  the  books  of  those  that 
are  out  of  the  church. 

VI.  Abstain  from  all  the  heathen  books.  For  what  hast 
thou  to  do  with  such  foreign  discourses,  or  laws,  or  false 
prophets,  which  subvert  the  faith  of  the  unstable?  For 
what  defect  dost  thou  find  in  the  law  of  God,  that  thou 
shouldst  have  recourse  to  those  heathenish  fables?  For  if 
thou  hast  a  mind  to  read  history,  thou  hast  the  books  of  the 
Kings ;  if  books  of  wisdom  or  poetry,  thou  hast  those  of  the 
Prophets,  of  Job,  and  the  Proverbs,  in  which  thou  wilt  find 
greater  depth  of  sagacity  than  in  all  the  heathen  poets  and 
sophisters,  because  these  are  the  words  of  the  Lord,  the  only 
wise  God.  If  thou  desirest  something  to  sing,  thou  hast  the 
Psalms ;  if  the  origin  of  things,  thou  hast  Genesis ;  if  laws 
and  statutes,  thou  hast  the  glorious  law  of  the  Lord  God. 
Do  thou,  therefore,  utterly  abstain  from  all  strange  and 
diabolical  books.  Nay,  when  thou  readest  the  law,  think 
not  thyself  bound  to  observe  the  additional  precepts ;  though 
not  all  of  them,  yet  some  of  them.  Read  those  barely  for 
the  sake  of  history,  in  order  to  the  knowledge  of  them,  and 
to  glorify  God  that  he  has  delivered  thee  from  such  great 
and  so  many  bonds.  Propose  to  thyself  to  distinguish 
what  rules  were  from  the  law  of  nature,  and  what  were 
added  afterwards,  or  were  such  additional  rules  as  were 
introduced  and  given  in  the  wilderness  to  the  Israelites,  after 
the  making  of  the  calf ;  for  the  law  contains  those  precepts 
which  were  spoken  by  the  Lord  God  before  the  people  fell 
into  idolatry,  and  made  a  calf  like  the  Egyptian  Apis  — 
that  is,  the  ten  commandments.  But  as  to  those  bonds  which 
were  further  laid  upon  them  after  they  had  sinned,  do  not 
thou  draw  them  upon  thyself;  for  our  Savior  came  for  no 
other  reason  but  that  he  might  deliver  those  that  were  ob- 


152  SELECTIONS  FROM  THE 

noxious  thereto  from  the  wrath  which  was  reserved  for 
them,  that  he  might  fulfil  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  and 
that  he  might  abrogate  or  change  those  secondary  bonds 
which  were  superadded  to  the  rest  of  the  law.  For  therefore 
did  he  call  to  us,  and  say,  "  Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor 
and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  When, 
therefore,  thou  hast  read  the  Law,  which  is  agreeable  to  the 
Gospel  and  to  the  Prophets,  read  also  the  books  of  the  Kings, 
that  thou  mayest  thereby  learn  which  of  the  kings  were 
righteous,  and  how  they  were  prospered  by  God,  and  how  the 
promise  of  eternal  life  continued  with  them  from  Him ;  but 
those  kings  which  went  a-whoring  from  God  did  soon  perish 
in  their  apostasy  by  the  righteous  judgment  of  God,  and 
were  deprived  of  his  life,  inheriting,  instead  of  rest,  eternal 
punishment.  Wherefore  by  reading  these  books  thou  wilt 
be  mightily  strengthened  in  the  faith,  and  edified  in  Christ, 
whose  body  and  member  thou  art. 

2.      OF   PARENTS    AND   CHILDREN. 

Ye  fathers,  educate  your  children  in  the  Lord,  bringing 
them  up  in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord;  and 
teach  them  such  trades  as  are  agreeable  and  suitable  to  the 
Word,  lest  they  by  such  opportunity  become  extravagant, 
and  continue  without  punishment  from  their  parents,  and  so 
get  relaxation  before  their  time,  and  go  astray  from  that 
which  is  good.  Wherefore  be  not  afraid  to  reprove  them, 
and  to  teach  them  wisdom  with  severity.  For  your  cor- 
rections will  not  kill  them,  but  rather  preserve  them.  As 
Solomon  says  somewhere  in  the  book  of  Wisdom :  "  Chas- 
ten thy  son,  and  he  will  refresh  thee ;  so  wilt  thou  have  good 
hope  of  him.  Thou  verily  shall  smite  him  with  the  rod,  and 
shalt  deliver  his  soul  from  death."  And  again,  says  the 
same  Solomon  thus,  "  He  that  spareth  his  rod,  hateth  his 


"APOSTOLICAL  CONSTITUTIONS"  153 

son " ;  and  afterwards,  "  Beat  his  sides  whilst  he  is  an 
infant,  lest  he  be  hardened  and  disobey  thee."  He,  there- 
fore, that  neglects  to  admonish  and  instruct  his  own  son, 
hates  his  own  child.  Do  you  therefore  teach  your  children 
the  word  of  the  Lord.  Bring  them  under  with  cutting 
stripes,  and  make  them  subject  from  their  infancy,  teach- 
ing them  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  are  Christian  and 
divine,  and  delivering  to  them  every  sacred  writing,  "  not 
giving  them  such  liberty  that  they  get  the  mastery,"  and 
act  against  your  opinion,  not  permitting  them  to  club  to- 
gether for  a  treat  with  their  equals.  For  so  they  will  be 
turned  to  disorderly  courses,  and  will  fall  into  fornication; 
and  if  this  happens  by  the  carelessness  of  their  parents,  those 
that  begat  them  will  be  guilty  of  their  souls.  For  if  the 
offending  children  get  into  the  company  of  debauched 
persons  by  the  negligence  of  those  that  begat  them,  they 
will  not  be  punished  alone  by  themselves ;  but  their  parents 
also  be  condemned  on  their  account.  For  this  cause  en- 
deavor, at  the  time  when  they  are  of  an  age  fit  for  marriage, 
to  join  them  in  wedlock,  and  settle  them  together,  lest  in  the 
heat  and  fervor  of  their  age  their  course  of  life  become 
dissolute,  and  you  be  required  to  give  an  account  by  the  Lord 
God  in  the  day  of  judgment. 

3.       HOW    THE    CATECHUMENS    ARE    TO    BE    INSTRUCTED. 

Let  him,  therefore,  who  is  to  be  taught  the  truth  in  re- 
gard to  piety  be  instructed  before  his  baptism  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  unbegotten  God,  in  the  understanding  of  his 
only  begotten  Son,  in  the  assured  acknowledgment  of  the 
Holy  Ghost.  Let  him  learn  the  order  of  the  several  parts  of 
the  creation,  the  series  of  providence,  the  different  dispensa- 
tions of  thy  laws.  Let  him  be  instructed  how  the  world 
was  made,  and  why  man  was  appointed  to  be  a  citizen 
therein ;  let  him  also  know  his  own  nature,  of  what  sort  it  is ; 


iS4      FROM  THE  "APOSTOLICAL  CONSTITUTIONS" 

let  him  be  taught  how  God  punished  the  wicked  with  water 
and  fire,  and  did  glorify  the  saints  in  every  generation  —  I 
mean  Seth,  and  Enos,  and  Enoch,  and  Noah,  and  Abraham 
and  his  posterity,  and  Melchizedek,  and  Job,  and  Moses, 
and  Joshua,  and  Caleb,  and  Phineas  the  priest,  and  those  that 
were  holy  in  every  generation ;  and  how  God  still  took  care 
of  and  did  not  reject  mankind,  but  called  them  from  their 
error  and  vanity  to  the  acknowledgment  of  the  truth  at  va- 
rious seasons,  reducing  them  from  bondage  and  impiety  unto 
liberty  and  piety,  from  injustice  to  righteousness,  from  death 
eternal  to  everlasting  life.  Let  him  that  offers  himself  to 
baptism  learn  these  and  the  like  things  during  the  time  that 
he  is  a  catechumen ;  and  let  him  who  lays  his  hands  upon 
him  adore  God,  the  Lord  of  the  whole  world,  and  thank  him 
for  his  creation,  for  his  sending  Christ  his  only  begotten 
Son,  that  he  might  save  man  by  blotting  out  his  transgres- 
sions, and  that  he  might  remit  ungodliness  and  sins,  and 
might  "  purify  him  from  all  filthiness  of  flesh  and  spirit," 
and  sanctify  man  according  to  the  good  pleasure  of  his 
kindness,  that  he  might  inspire  him  with  the  knowledge  of 
his  will,  and  enlighten  the  eyes  of  his  heart  to  consider 
of  his  wonderful  works,  and  make  known  to  him  the  judg- 
ments of  righteousness,  that  so  he  might  hate  every  way 
of  iniquity,  and  walk  in  the  way  of  truth,  that  he  might 
be  thought  worthy  of  the  laver  of  regeneration,  to  the  adop- 
tion of  sons,  which  is  in  Christ,  that  "  being  planted  together 
in  the  likeness  of  the  death  of  Christ,"  in  hopes  of  a  glorious 
communication,  he  may  be  mortified  to  sin,  and  may  live 
to  God,  as  to  -his  mind,  and  word,  and  deed,  and  may  be 
numbered  together  in  the  book  of  the  living.  And  after  this 
thanksgiving,  let  him  instruct  him  in  the  doctrines  concern- 
ing our  Lord's  incarnation,  and  in  those  concerning  his 
passion,  and  resurrection  from  the  dead,  and  assumption. 


X.    CHARLEMAGNE. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Charlemagne  was  king  of  the  Franks  from  768  to  814 
A.  D.  On  Christmas  day,  800,  he  was  crowned  by  the  pope 
as  emperor  of  the  Romans.  In  spite  of  his  almost  incessant 
wars  and  his  brilliant  career  as  a  conqueror,  he  earnestly 
sought  to  promote  the  material  and  spiritual  welfare  of  his 
people.  He  exhibited  a  great  thirst  for  knowledge,  and 
was  himself  a  model  of  diligence  in  study.  He  assiduously 
cultivated  his  mind  by  intercourse  with  learned  men ;  and, 
to  the  time  of  his  death,  scholarly  discussions  remained  his 
favorite  means  of  recreation.  In  addition  to  his  native  Ger- 
man he  spoke  several  other  languages  readily,  especially 
the  Latin.  He  invited  to  his  court  from  all  parts  of  Europe 
the  most  distinguished  scholars,  of  whom  Alcuin,  of  Eng- 
land, is  best  known.  He  established  a  model  school  at  court, 
and  sometimes  visited  it  in  person  to  note  the  progress  of 
the  pupils. 

He  sought  to  multiply  the  educational  facilities  of  his 
great  empire,  and  even  went  so  far  as  to  contemplate  the 
organization  of  a  popular  school  system.  He  endeavored 
to  enlist  the  interest  of  the  clergy  and  monks  in  education, 
as  they  were  at  the  time  the  chief  representatives  of  learn- 
ing. The  monasteries  and  bishops  were  urged  to  improve 
the  schools  already  existing,  and  to  establish  new  ones  wher- 
ever needed.  It  was  to  this  end  that  he  issued  in  787  the 
following  capitulary  addressed  to  the  abbot  Bangulfus.  The 
translation  is  that  of  Mullinger  in  his  "  Schools  of  Charles 
the  Great,"  and  is  evidently  more  literal  than  elegant. 


i56  CHARLEMAGNE 


SELECTION   FROM   CHARLEMAGNE'S   "CAPITULARY 

OF  787." 

Charles,  by  the  grace  of  God,  King  of  the  Franks  and 
of  the  Lombards,  and  Patrician  of  the  Romans,  to  Bangul- 
fus,  abbot,  and  to  his  whole  congregation  and  the  faithful 
committed  to  his  charge: 

Be  it  known  to  your  devotion,  pleasing  to  God,  that  in 
conjunction  with  our  faithful  we  have  judged  it  to  be  of 
utility  that,  in  the  bishoprics  and  monasteries  committed  by 
Christ's  favor  to  our  charge,  care  should  be  taken  that 
there  shall  be  not  only  a  regular  manner  of  life  and  one 
conformable  to  holy  religion,  but  also  the  study  of  letters, 
each  to  teach  and  learn  them  according  to  his  ability  and  the 
divine  assistance.  For  even  as  due  observance  of  the  rule 
of  the  house  tends  to  good  morals,  so  zeal  on  the  part  of  the 
teacher  and  the  taught  imparts  order  and  grace  to  sentences ; 
and  those  who  seek  to  please  God  by  living  aright  should 
also  not  neglect  to  please  him  by  right  speaking.  It  is 
written,  "  By  thine  own  words  shalt  thou  be  justified  or 
condemned " ;  and  although  right  doing  be  preferable  to 
right  speaking,  yet  must  the  knowledge  of  what  is  right 
precede  right  action.  Every  one,  therefore,  should  strive  to 
understand  what  it  is  he  would  fain  accomplish;  and  this 
right  understanding  will  be  the  sooner  gained  according  as 
the  utterances  of  the  tongue  are  free  from  error.  And  if 
false  speaking  is  to  be  shunned  by  all  men,  especially  should 
it  be  shunned  by  those  who  have  elected  to  be  the  servants  of 
the  truth. 

During  past  years  we  have  often  received  letters  from 
different  monasteries,  informing  us  that  at  their  sacred  serv- 
ices the  brethren  offered  up  prayers  on  our  behalf ;  and  we 


SELECTION  FROM  "CAPITULARY  OF  787"          157 

have  observed  that  the  thoughts  contained  in  these  letters, 
though  in  themselves  most  just,  were  expressed  in  uncouth 
language,  and  while  pious  devotion  dictated  the  sentiments, 
the  unlettered  tongue  was  unable  to  express  them  aright. 
Hence  there  has  arisen  in  our  minds  the  fear  lest,  if  the  skill 
to  write  rightly  were  thus  lacking,  so  too  would  the 
power  of  rightly  comprehending  the  sacred  Scriptures  be 
far  less  than  was  fitting ;  and  we  all  know  that  though  verbal 
errors  be  dangerous,  errors  of  the  understanding  are  yet 
more  so.  We  exhort  you,  therefore,  not  only  not  to  neglect 
the  study  of  letters,  but  to  apply  yourselves  thereto  with 
perseverance  and  with  that  humility  which  is  well  pleasing 
to  God;  so  that  you  may  be  able  to  penetrate  with  greater 
ease  and  certainty  the  mysteries  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 
For  as  these  contain  images,  tropes,  and  similar  figures,  it 
is  impossible  to  doubt  that  the  reader  will  arrive  far  more 
readily  at  the  spiritual  sense  according  as  he  is  the  better 
instructed  in  learning.  Let  there,  therefore,  be  chosen  for 
this  work  men  who  are  both  able  and  willing  to  learn,  and 
also  desirous  of  instructing  others ;  and  let  them  apply 
themselves  to  the  work  with  a  zeal  equaling  the  earnestness 
with  which  we  recommend  it  to  them.  It  is  our  wish  that 
you  may  be  what  it  behooves  the  soldiers  of  the  Church  to 
be  —  religious  in  heart,  learned  in  discourse,  pure  in  act, 
eloquent  in  speech ;  so  that  all  who  approach  your  house,  in 
order  to  invoke  the  Divine  Master  or  to  behold  the  excel- 
lence of  the  religious  life,  may  be  edified  in  beholding  you, 
and  instructed  in  hearing  you  discourse  or  chant,  and  may 
return  home  rendering  thanks  to  God  most  high. 

Fail  not,  as  thou  regardest  our  favor,  to  send  a  copy  of 
this  letter  to  all  thy  suffragans  and  to  all  the  monasteries; 
and  let  no  monk  go  beyond  his  monastery  to  administer 
justice,  or  to  enter  the  assemblies  and  the  voting-places. 
Adieu. 


XI.    RHABANUS  MAURUS. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Rhabanus  Maurus,  a  contemporary  with  Charlemagne, 
was  born  at  Mainz  about  766  A.  D.  He  sprang  from  an 
honorable  family.  After  receiving  from  his  mother  —  a 
model  of  Christian  womanhood  —  a  careful  training  in  the 
elements  of  learning,  he  was  sent  to  the  monastery  of 
Fuldd,  where  he  laid  a  broad  foundation  for  his  subsequent 
scholarship.  In  his  early  manhood  he  became  for  a  time 
a  pupil  of  Alcuin's,  and  won  the  lasting  confidence  and  affec- 
tion of  his  distinguished  master. 

After  leaving  Alcuin,  Rhabanus  became  head  of  the  mo- 
nastic school  of  Fulda,  to  which  he  brought  additional  effi- 
ciency and  distinction. 

From  far  and  near  this  school  attracted  numerous  pupils 
who  were  preparing  themselves  either  for  ecclesiastical  serv- 
ice or  for  secular  pursuits.  The  subjects  of  study  embraced 
not  only  the  seven  liberal  arts,  but  also  physics,  philosophy, 
and  theology.  Rhabanus  exhibited  great  zeal  in  the  work 
of  education,  and  was  the  first  to  win  the  proud  distinction 
of  Preceptor  Germania. 

In  847,  after  having  served  as  abbot  of  Fulda  for  some 
years,  he  was  promoted  to  the  dignity  of  Archbishop  of 
Mainz.  In  this  new  position  he  displayed  great  energy 
in  the  betterment  of  the  religious  and  educational  conditions 
of  his  see.  He  was  a  prolific  author,  and  more  than  thirty 
volumes  bear  his  name  on  their  title  pages.  He  was  ac- 
quainted with  Greek  as  well  as  with  Roman  literature,  and 

158 


"EDUCATION  OP  THE  CLERGY"  159 

he  drew  in  some  measure  on  the  treasures  of  both  to  enrich 
his  various  treatises. 

Among  his  numerous  writings  there  are  several  that  treat 
more  or  less  fully  of  education ;  namely,  "  Education  of  the 
Clergy,"  "  The  Reckoning  of  Time,"  "  On  the  Soul,"  "  Book 
of  the  World,"  and  "  The  Study  of  Wisdom  and  of  the 
Divine  Law  "  —  the  last  being  in  the  form  of  a  sermon. 
All  these  treatises,  which  are  found  in  the  Sammlung  der 
bedeutendsten  'pddagogischen  Schriftcn  edited  by  Schultz, 
Gansen,  and  Keller,  give  us  a  clear  insight  into  the  educa- 
tional theory  and  practice  of  the  ninth  century  of  our  era. 

The  following  selection  is  translated  from  the  "  Education 
of  the  Clergy  "  (Unterweisung  der  Geistlichen},  and  is  not- 
able for  two  reasons:  (i)  It  shows  us  the  subordination 
of  education  to  ecclesiastical  ends ;  and  (2)  it  presents  the 
fullest  discussion  of  the  seven  liberal  arts  that  has  come  to 
us  from  that  period. 

SELECTION  FROM  RHABANUS  MAURUS. 

EDUCATION  OF  THE  CLERGY. 

I.  An  ecclesiastical  education  should  qualify  the  sacred 
office  of  the  ministry  for  divine  service.  It  is  fitting  that 
those  who  from  an  exalted  station  undertake  the  direction  of 
the  life  of  the  Church,  should  acquire  fulness  of  knowledge, 
and  that  they  further  should  strive  after  rectitude  of  life 
and  perfection  of  development.  They  should  not  be  allowed 
to  remain  in  ignorance  about  anything  that  appears  bene- 
ficial for  their  own  information  or  for  the  instruction  of 
those  entrusted  to  their  care.  Therefore  they  should  en- 
deavor to  grasp  and  include  in  their  knowledge  the  following 
things:  An  acquaintance  with  Holy  Scripture,  the  unadul- 
terated truth  of  history,  the  derivative  modes  of  speech, 


160  RHABANUS  MAURUS 

the  mystical  sense  of  words,  the  advantages  growing  oat 
of  the  separate  branches  of  knowledge,  the  integrity  of  life 
that  manifests  itself  in  good  morals,  delicacy  and  good 
taste  in  oral  discourse,  penetration  in  the  explanation  of 
doctrine,  the  different  kinds  of  medicine,  and  the  various 
forms  of  disease.  Any  one  to  whom  all  this  remains  un- 
known, is  not  able  to  care  for  his  own  welfare,  let  alone 
that  of  others. 

2.  The  foundation,  the  content,  and  the  perfection  of  all 
wisdom  is  Holy  Scripture,  which  has  taken  its  origin  from 
that  unchangeable  and  eternal  Wisdom,  which  streams  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Most  High,  which  was  begotten  before 
every  other  creature  through  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  is  a 
light  incessantly  beaming  from  the  words  of  Holy  Scripture. 
And  when  anything  else  deserves  the  name  of  wisdom,  it 
goes  back  in  its  origin  to  this  one  source  of  the  wisdom  of 
the  Church.     Every  truth,  which  is  discovered  by  any  one, 
is  recognized  as  true  by  the  truth  itself  through  the  media- 
tion of  the  truth ;  every  good  thing,  which  is  in  any  way 
traced  out,  is  recognized  and  determined  as  good  by  the 
good  itself;  all  wisdom,  which  is  brought  to  light  by  any 
one,  is  found  to  be  wisdom  by  wisdom  itself.     And  all  that 
is  found  of  truth  and  wisdom  in  the  books  of  the  philoso- 
phers of  this  world,  dare  be  ascribed  to  nothing  else  than 
just  to  truth  and  wisdom;  for  it  was  not  originally  invented 
by  those   among  whose  utterances  it  is  found ;  it  has  much 
rather  been  recognized  as  something  present  from  eternity, 
so  far  as  wisdom  and  truth,  which  bring  illumination  to  all 
with  their  instruction,  have  granted  the  possibility  of  such 
recognition. 

3.  Now  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  come  to  the  aid  of 
the  weakness  of  the  human  will,  have,  in  dependence  upon 
the  one  perfect  language  in  which  under  favorable  circum- 
stances they  might  have  spread  over  the  whole  globe,  been 


"EDUCATION  OF  THE  CLERGY"  161 

widely  circulated  in  the  different  languages  of  the  trans- 
lators, in  order  that  they  might  be  known  to  the  nations 
unto  salvation.  Those  who  read  them  strive  for  nothing 
else  than  to  grasp  the  thought  and  meaning  of  those  who 
wrote  them,  in  order  thereby  to  fathom  the  will  of  God, 
at  whose  bidding  and  under  whose  direction,  as  we  believe, 
they  were  written.  But  those  who  read  superficially  allow 
themselves  to  be  deceived  through  the  manifold  recurring 
passages,  the  sense  of  which  is  obscure,  and  the  meaning 
of  which  is  doubtful ;  they  assign  to  what  is  read  a  meaning 
that  does  not  belong  to  it ;  they  seek  errors  where  no  errors 
are  to  be  found ;  they  surround  themselves  with  an  ob- 
scurity, in  which  they  can  not  find  the  right  path.  I  have 
no  doubt  that  this  has  been  so  ordered  by  God's  providence 
that  the  pride  of  man  may  be  restrained  through  spiritual 
labor ;  in  order  that  the  knowledge  of  man  may  be  divorced 
from  pride,  to  which  it  easily  falls  a  prey,  and  then  loses 
its  value  entirely. 

4.  Above  all  it  is  necessary  that  he,  who  aims  to  attain 
the  summit  of  wisdom,  should  be  converted  to  the  fear  of  the 
Lord,  in  order  to  know  what  the  divine  will  bids  us  strive 
for  and  shun.  The  fear  of  the  Lord  fills  us  with  the  thought 
of  our  mortality  and  future  death.  With  mortification  of 
the  flesh  it  nails,  as  it  were,  the  movements  of  pride  to  the 
martyr  cross  of  Christ.  Then  it  is  enjoined  to  be  lowly  in 
piety.  Therefore  we  are  not  to  raise  any  objection  to  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  either  when  we  understand  them  and  feel 
ourselves  smitten  by  their  words,  or  when  we  do  not  under- 
stand them,  and  give  ourselves  up  to  the  thought  that  we 
can  understand  and  grasp  something  better  out  of  our  own 
minds.  We  should  remember  that  it  is  better  and  more 
comformable  to  truth,  to  believe  what  is  written,  even  if  the 
sense  remains  concealed  from  us,  than  to  hold  that  for  true 
which  we  are  able  to  recognize  by  our  own  strength. 

PAINTER  FED.   Ess. — n 


162  RHABANVS  MAURVS 

5.  The  first  of  the  liberal  arts  is  grammar,  the  second 
rhetoric,  the  third  dialectic,  the  fourth  arithmetic,  the  fifth 
geometry,  the  sixth  music,  the  seventh  astronomy. 

Grammar  takes  its  name  from  the  written  character,  as 
the  derivation  of  the  word  indicates.  The  definition  of 
grammar  is  this :  Grammar  is  the  science  which  teaches  us  to 
explain  the  poets  and  historians;  it  is  the  art  which  qualifies 
us  to  write  and  speak  correctly.  Grammar  is  the  source  and 
foundation  of  the  liberal  arts.  It  should  be  taught  in  every 
Christian  school,  since  the  art  of  writing  and  speaking  cor- 
rectly is  attained  through  it.  How  could  one  understand 
the  sense  of  the  spoken  word  or  the  meaning  of  letters  and 
syllables,  if  one  had  not  learned  this  before  from  grammar? 
How  could  one  know  about  metrical  feet,  accent,  and  verses, 
if  grammar  had  not  given  one  knowledge  of  them?  How 
should  one  learn  to  know  the  articulation  of  discourse,  the 
advantages  of  figurative  language,  the  laws  of  word  forma- 
tion, and  the  correct  forms  of  words,  if  one  had  not  famil- 
iarized himself  with  the  art  of  grammar? 

All  the  forms  of  speech,  of  which  secular  science  makes 
use  in  its  writings,  are  found  repeatedly  employed  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  Every  one,  who  reads  the  sacred  Scrip- 
tures with  care,  will  discover  that  our  (biblical)  authors 
have  used  derivative  forms  of  speech  in  greater  and  more 
manifold  abundance  than  would  have  been  supposed  and 
believed.  There  are  in  the  Scriptures  not  only  examples 
of  all  kinds  of  figurative  expressions,  but  the  designations 
of  some  of  them  by  name ;  as,  allegory,  riddle,  parable.  A 
knowledge  of  these  things  is  proved  to  be  necessary  in 
relation  to  the  interpretation  of  those  passages  of  Holy 
Scripture  which  admit  of  a  twofold  sense;  an  interpreta- 
tion strictly  literal  would  lead  to  absurdities.  Everywhere 
we  are  to  consider  whether  that,  which  we  do  not  at  once 
understand,  is  to  be  apprehended  as  a  figurative  expression 


"EDUCATION  OF  THE  CLERGY"  163 

in  some  sense.  A  knowledge  of  prosody,  which  is  offered 
in  grammar,  is  not  dishonorable,  since  among  the  Jews, 
as  St.  Jerome  testifies,  the  Psalter  resounds  sometimes  with 
iambics,  sometimes  with  Alcaics,  sometimes  chooses  sono- 
rous Sapphics,  and  sometimes  even  does  not  disdain  cata- 
lectic  feet.  But  in  Deuteronomy  and  Isaiah,  as  in  Solomon 
and  Job,  as  Josephus  and  Origen  have  pointed  out,  there 
are  hexameters  and  pentameters.  Hence  this  art,  though 
it  may  be  secular,  has  nothing  unworthy  in  itself ;  it  should 
rather  be  learned  as  thoroughly  as  possible. 

6.  According  to  the  statements  of  teachers,  rhetoric  is 
the  art  of  using  secular  discourse  effectively  in  the  circum- 
stances of  daily  life.  From  this  definition  rhetoric  seems 
indeed  to  have  reference  merely  to  secular  wisdom.  Yet 
it  is  not  foreign  to  ecclesiastical  instruction.  Whatever  the 
preacher  and  herald  of  the  divine  law,  in  his  instruction, 
brings  forward  in  an  eloquent  and  becoming  manner ;  what- 
ever in  his  written  exposition  he  knows  how  to  clothe  in 
adequate  and  impressive  language,  he  owes  to  his  acquaint- 
ance with  this  art.  Whoever  at  the  proper  time  makes 
himself  familiar  with  this  art,  and  faithfully  follows  its 
rules  in  speaking  and  writing,  needs  not  count  it  as  some- 
thing blameworthy.  On  the  contrary,  whoever  thoroughly 
learns  it  so  that  he  acquires  the  ability  to  proclaim  God's 
word,  performs  a  good  work.  Through  rhetoric  anything 
is  proved  true  or  false.  Who  would  have  the  courage  to 
maintain  that  the  defenders  of  truth  should  stand  weapon- 
less in  the  presence  of  falsehood,  so  that  those,  who  dare 
to  represent  the  false,  should  know  how  by  their  discourse 
to  win  the  favor  and  sympathy  of  the  hearers,  and  that,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  friends  of  truth  should  not  be  able  to  do 
this;  that  those  should  know  how  to  present  falsehood 
briefly,  clearly,  and  with  the  semblance  of  truth,  and  that 
the  latter,  on  the  contrary,  should  clothe  the  truth  in  such 


164  RHABANUS  MAURUS 

an  exposition,  that  listening  would  become  a  burden,  ap- 
prehension of  the  truth  a  weariness,  and  faith  in  the  truth 
an  impossibility? 

7.  Dialectic  is  the  science  of  the  understanding,  which 
fits  us  for  investigations  and  definitions,  for  explanations, 
and  for  distinguishing  the  true  from  the  false.     It  is  the 
science   of   sciences.     It  teaches   how   to   teach   others;    it 
.teaches  learning  itself ;  in  it  the  reason  marks  and  manifests 
itself  according  to  its  nature,  efforts,  and  activities ;  it  alone 
is  capable  of  knowing;  it  not  only  will,  but  can  lead  others 
to  knowledge;  its  conclusions  lead  us  to  an  apprehension 
of  our  being  and  of  our  origin;  through  it  we  apprehend 
the  origin  and  activity  of  the  good,  of  Creator  and  creature ; 
it  teaches  us  to  discover  the  truth  and  to  unmask  falsehood ; 
it  teaches  us  to  draw  conclusions ;  it  shows  us  what  is  valid 
in  argument  and  what  is  not;  it  teaches  us  to  recognize 
what  is  contrary  to  the  nature  of  things;  it  teaches  us  to 
distinguish  in  controversy  the  true,  the  probable,  and  the 
wholly  false ;  by  means  of  this  science  we  are  able  to  in- 
vestigate   everything    with    penetration,    to    determine    its 
nature  with  certainty,  and  to  discuss  it  with  circumspection. 

Therefore  the  clergy  must  understand  this  excellent  art 
and  constantly  reflect  upon  its  laws,  in  order  that  they  may 
be  able  keenly  to  pierce  the  craftiness  of  errorists,  and  to 
refute  their  fatal  fallacies. 

8.  Arithmetic  is  the  science  of  pure  extension  determi- 
nable  by  number ;  it  is  the  science  of  numbers.    Writers  on 
secular  science  assign  it,  under  the  head  of  mathematics,  to 
the  first  place,  because  it  does  not  presuppose  any  of  the 
other  departments.     Music,   geometry,  and  astronomy,   on 
the  contrary,  need  the  help  of  arithmetic;  without  it  they 
cannot  arise  or  exist.     We  should  know,  however,  that  the 
learned    Hebrew    Josephus,    in    his    work    on    Antiquities, 
Chapter  VIII.  of  Book  L,  makes  the  statement  that  Abra- 


"EDUCATION  OF  THE  CLERGY"  165 

ham  brought  arithmetic  and  astronomy  to  the  Egyptians; 
but  that  they  as  a  people  of  penetrating  mind,  extensively 
developed  from  these  germs  the  other  sciences.  The  holy 
Fathers  were  right  in  advising  those  eager  for  knowledge 
to  cultivate  arithmetic,  because  in  large  measure  it  turns  the 
mind  from  fleshly  desires,  and  furthermore  awakens  the  wish 
to  comprehend  what  with  God's  help  we  can  merely  receive 
with  the  heart.  Therefore  the  significance  of  number  is 
not  to  be  underestimated.  Its  very  great  value  for  an 
interpretation  of  many  passages  of  Holy  Scripture  is  mani- 
fest to  all  who  exhibit  zeal  in  their  investigations.  Not 
without  good  reason  is  it  said  in  praise  of  God,  "  Thou 
hast  ordained  all  things  by  measure,  number,  and  weight." 
(Book  of  Wisdom  XL  21.) 

But  every  number,  through  its  peculiar  qualities,  is  so 
definite  that  none  of  the  others  can  be  like  it.  They  are 
all  unequal  and  different.  The  single  numbers  are  differ- 
ent; the  single  numbers  are  limited;  but  all  are  infinite. 

Those  with  whom  Plato  stands  in  especial  honor  will 
not  make  bold  to  esteem  numbers  lightly,  as  if  they  were 
of  no  consequence  for  the  knowledge  of  God.  He  teaches 
that  God  made  the  world  out  of  numbers.  And  among  us 
the  prophet  says  of  God,  "  He  forms  the  world  by  num- 
ber." And  in  the  Gospel  the  Savior  says,  "  The  very  hairs 
of  your  head  are  all  numbered."  .  .  .  Ignorance  of 
numbers  leaves  many  things  unintelligible  that  are  ex- 
pressed in  the  Holy  Scripture  in  a  derivative  sense  or  with 
a  mystical  meaning. 

9.  We  now  come  to  the  discussion  of  geometry.  It  is 
an  exposition  of  form  proceeding  from  observation ;  it  is 
also  a  very  common  means  of  demonstration  among  phi- 
losophers, who,  to  adduce  at  once  the  most  full-toned  evi- 
dence, declare  that  their  Jupiter  made  use  of  geometry  in 
his  works.  I  do  not  know  indeed  whether  I  should  find 


166  RHABANUS  MAURVS 

praise  or  censure  in  this  declaration  of  the  philosophers, 
that  Jupiter  engraved  upon  the  vault  of  the  skies  precisely 
what  they  themselves  draw  in  the  sand  of  the  earth. 

When  this  in  a  proper  manner  is  transferred  to  God,  the 
Almighty  Creator,  this  assumption  may  perhaps  come  near 
the  truth.  If  this  statement  seems  admissible,  the  Holy 
Trinity  makes  use  of  geometry  in  so  far  as  it  bestows 
manifold  forms  and  images  upon  the  creatures  which  up 
to  the  present  day  it  has  called  into  being,  as  in  its  adorable 
omnipotence  it  further  determines  the  course  of  the  stars, 
as  it  prescribes  their  course  to  the  planets,  and  as  it  assigns 
to  the  fixed  stars  ttieir  unalterable  position.  For  every 
excellent  and  well-ordered  arrangement  can  be  reduced  to 
the  special  requirements  of  this  science.  .  .  . 

This  science  found  realization  also  at  the  building  of  the 
tabernacle  and  temple;  the  same  measuring  rod,  circles, 
spheres,  hemispheres,  quadrangles,  and  other  figures  were 
employed.  The  knowledge  of  all  this  brings  to  him,  who 
is  occupied  with  it,  no  small  gain  for  his  spiritual  culture. 

10.  Music  is  the  science  of  time  intervals  as  they  are 
perceived  in  tones.  This  science  is  as  eminent  as  it  is 
useful.  He  who  is  a  stranger  to  it  is  not  able  to  fulfil  the 
duties  of  an  ecclesiastical  office  in  a  suitable  manner.  A 
proper  delivery  in  reading  and  a  lovely  rendering  of  the 
Psalms  in  the  church  are  regulated  by  a  knowledge  of  this 
science.  Yet  it  is  not  only  good  reading  and  beautiful 
psalmody  that  we  owe  to  music;  through  it  alone  do  we 
become  capable  of  celebrating  in  the  most  solemn  manner 
every  divine  service.  Music  penetrates  all  the  activities  of 
our  life,  in  this  sense  namely,  that  we  above  all  carry  out 
the  commands  of  the  Creator  and  bow  with  a  pure  heart 
to  his  commands;  all  that  we  speak,  all  that  makes  our 
hearts  beat  faster,  is  shown  through  the  rhythm  of  music 
united  with  the  excellence  of  harmony;  for  music  is  the 


"EDUCATION  OF  THE  CLERGY"  167 

science  which  teaches  us  agreeably  to  change  tones  in 
duration  and  pitch.  When  we  employ  ourselves  with  good 
pursuits  in  life,  we  show  ourselves  thereby  disciples  of  this 
art;  so  long  as  we  do  what  is  wrong,  we  do  not  feel  our- 
selves drawn  to  music.  Even  heaven  and  earth,  as  every- 
thing that  happens  here  through  the  arrangement  of  the 
Most  High,  is  nothing  but  music,  as  Pythagoras  testifies 
that  this  world  was  created  by  music  and  can  be  ruled  by 
it.  Even  with  the  Christian  religion  music  is  most  in- 
timately united ;  thus  it  is  possible  that  to  him,  who  does 
not  know  even  a  little  music,  many  things  remain  closed 
and  hidden. 

ii.  There  remains  yet  astronomy  which,  as  some  one 
has  said,  is  a  weighty  means  of  demonstration  to  the  pious, 
and  to  the  curious  a  grievous  torment.  If  we  seek  to 
investigate  it  with  a  pure  heart  and  an  ample  mind,  then 
it  fills  us,  as  the  ancients  said,  with  great  love  for  it.  For 
what  will  it  not  signify,  that  we  soar  in  spirit  to  the  sky, 
that  with  penetration  of  mind  we  analyze  that  sublime 
structure,  that  we,  in  part  at  least,  fathom  with  the  keenness 
of  our  logical  faculties  what  mighty  space  has  enveloped  in 
mystery!  The  world  itself,  according  .to  the  assumption 
of  some,  is  said  to  have  the  shape  of  a  sphere,  in  order  that 
in  its  circumference  it  may  be  able  to  contain  the  different 
forms  of  things.  Thus  Seneca,  in  agreement  with  the  phi- 
losophers of  ancient  times,  composed  a  work  under  the  title, 
"  The  Shape  of  the  Earth." 

Astronomy,  of  which  we  now  speak,  teaches  the  laws  of 
the  stellar  world.  The  stars  can  take  their  place  or  carry 
out  their  motion  only  in  the  manner  established  by  the 
Creator,  unless  by  tbe  will  of  the  Creator  a  miraculous 
change  takes  place.  T\ms  we  read  that  Joshua  commanded 
the  sun  to  stand  still  in  Gibeon,  that  in  the  days  of  King 
Josiah  the  sun  went  backward  ten  degrees,  and  that  at  the 


i68  RHABANUS  MAURUS 

death  of  the  Lord  the  sun  was  darkened  for  three  hours. 
We  call  such  occurrences  miracles  (Wunder},  because  they 
contradict  the  usual  course  of  things,  and  therefore  excite 
wonder.  .  .  . 

That  part  of  astronomy,  which  is  built  up  on  the  investi- 
gation of  natural  phenomena,  in  order  to  determine  the 
course  of  the  sun,  of  the  moon,  and  stars,  and  to  effect  a 
proper  reckoning  of  time,  the  Christian  clergy  should  seek 
to  learn  with  the  utmost  diligence,  in  order  through  the 
knowledge  of  laws  brought  to  light  and  through  the  valid 
and  convincing  proof  of  the  given  means  of  evidence,  to 
place  themselves  in  a  position,  not  only  to  determine  the 
course  of  past  years  according  to  truth  and  reality,  but 
also  for  further  times  to  draw  confident  conclusions,  and 
to  fix  the  time  of  Easter  and  all  other  festivals  and  holy 
days,  and  to  announce  to  the  congregation  the  proper  cele- 
bration of  them. 

12.  The  seven  liberal  arts  of  the  philosophers,  which 
Christians  should  learn  for  their  utility  and  advantage,  we 
have,  as  I  think,  sufficiently  discussed.  We  have  this  yet 
to  add.  When  those,  who  are  called  philosophers,  have  in 
their  expositions  or  in  their  writings,  uttered  perchance 
some  truth,  which  agrees  with  our  faith,  we  should  not 
handle  it  timidly,  but  rather  take  it  as  from  its  unlawful 
possessors  and  apply  it  to  our  own  use. 


i  ^Le^tr*^  (MzJUu 


XII.     MARTIN  LUTHER. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Martin  Luther,  the  greatest  of  the  Protestant  reformers, 
was  born  at  Eisleben,  Germany,  November  10,  1483.  His 
father  was  a  miner  in  humble  circumstances.  The  home- 
training  he  received  was  severe  and  hardening.  At  school 
he  came  under  the  prevalent  cruel  discipline,  and  was  cruelly 
flogged  for  not  accomplishing  tasks  that  were  entirely  be- 
yond his  power.  He  was  sent  at  the  age  of  fourteen  to  the 
school  at  Magdeburg  conducted  by  the  Brethren  of  the 
Common  Life.  A  year  later  he  went  to  Eisenach,  where  he 
completed  his  secondary  education  under  the  learned  human- 
ist John  Tribonius. 

In  1501  he  entered  the  University  of  Erfurt  which,  un- 
like many  other  universities  of  the  time,  welcomed  the 
study  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  classics.  He  took  the  Mas- 
ter's degree  there  in  1505,  and  then  entered  the  Augustin- 
ian  convent  of  mendicant  friars  at  Erfurt,  where  he  passed 
through  a  profound  religious  experience.  In  1507  he  was 
ordained  to  the  priesthood,  and  a  year  later  was  called  to  the 
newly  founded  University  of  Wittenberg,  where  he  lectured 
first  on  Aristotle  and  then  on  the  Scriptures.  On  the  3ist 
of  October,  1517,  in  opposition  to  John  Tetzel,  who  was 
preaching  indulgences  throughout  Germany,  Luther  nailed 
his  famous  Ninety-five  Theses  to  the  door  of  the  Castle 
Church  at  Wittenberg.  This  event,  which  led  to  the  sub- 
sequent conflict  with  the  Papacy,  is  commonly  regarded  as 
the  beginning  of  the  Protestant  revolution,  which  in  the 

169 


i;o  MARTIN  LUTHER 

next  several  decades  firmly  established  itself  among  the 
Teutonic  peoples  of  Europe. 

The  necessities  of  the  Reformation,  as  well  as  his  pro- 
found patriotism,  gave  Luther  an  intense  interest  in  educa- 
tion. Apart  from  frequent  discussions  of  the  subject  in 
other  writings,  he  prepared  two  treatises  which  exhibit  great 
breadth  of  view  and  a  marvelous  though  unrefined  energy 
of  expression.  The  first  of  these  is  a  "  Letter  to  the  Mayors 
and  Aldermen  of  All  the  Cities  of  Germany  in  Behalf  of 
Christian  Schools,"  which  was  written  in  1524,  and  the 
second,  a  "  Sermon  on  the  Duty  of  Sending  Children  to 
School,"  which  was  prepared  in  1530.  These  treatises  touch 
on  nearly  every  important  phase  of  education,  and  are 
admirable  in  their  statement  of  principles  and  suggestion 
of  methods.  The  commendation  of  Dittes,  director  of  the 
Normal  School  in  Vienna,  is  not  unmerited :  "  If  we  survey 
the  pedagogy  of  Luther  in  all  its  extent,"  he  says,  "  and 
imagine  it  fully  realized  in  practice,  what  a  splendid  picture 
the  schools  and  education  of  the  sixteenth  century  would 
present!  We  should  have  courses  of  study,  text-books, 
teachers,  methods,  principles,  and  modes  of  discipline, 
schools  and  school  regulations,  that  could  serve  as  models 
for  our  own  age.  But,  alas!  Luther,  like  all  great  men, 
was  little  understood  by  his  age  and  adherents;  arid  what 
was  understood  was  inadequately  esteemed,  and  what  was 
esteemed  was  only  imperfectly  realized." 

With  Luther  education  was  not  an  end  in  itself,  but  a 
means  of  more  effective  service  in  church  and  state.  If 
people  or  rulers  neglect  the  education  of  the  young,  they 
inflict  an  injury  on  the  cause  of  Christ  and  on  the  weal  of 
the  state ;  they  advance  the  cause  of  Satan,  and  bring  down 
upon  themselves  the  wrath  of  heaven.  This  is  the  funda- 
mental thought  that  underlies  all  Luther's  writings  on 
education. 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  171 

The  "  Letter  to  the  Mayors  and  Aldermen  of  All  the 
Cities  of  Germany,"  which  follows  almost  in  its  entirety,  is 
translated  from  the  Leipzig  edition  of  Luther's  works.  It 
was  written  in  the  early  years  of  the  Protestant  movement, 
and  exhibits  in  more  than  one  passage  the  fierce  energy  of 
a  strong  nature  engaged  in  a  struggle  of  life  or  death.  But 
in  spite  of  its  outbursts  of  rude  polemic  energy,  we  cannot 
fail  to  recognize  the  breadth  of  view,  solidity  of  judgment, 
and  excellence  of  recommendation,  that  make  it  an  educa- 
tional document  of  great  importance.1  It  is  the  first  great 
contribution  of  Protestantism  to  the  science  and  art  of  edu- 
cation—  the  beginning  of  the  movement  that  has  given 
Europe  and  America  its  public  schools. 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER. 

LETTER  TO  THE   MAYORS  AND  ALDERMEN   OF  ALL  THE  CITIES 
OF  GERMANY  IN   BEHALF  OF  CHRISTIAN   SCHOOLS. 

First  of  all,  we  see  how  the  schools  are  deteriorating 
throughout  Germany.  The  universities  are  becoming  weak, 
the  monasteries  are  declining,  and,  as  Isaiah  says,  "  The 
grass  withereth,  the  flower  fadeth,  because  the  spirit  of  the 
Lord  bloweth  upon  it,"  through  the  Gospel.  For  through  \. 
the  word  of  God  the  unchristian  and  sensual  character  of 
these  institutions  is  becoming  known.  And  because  selfish 
parents  see  that  they  can  no  longer  place  their  children  upon 
the  bounty  of  monasteries  and  cathedrals,  they  refuse  to 
educate  them.  "  Why  should  we  educate  our  children,"  they 
say,  "  if  they  are  not  to  become  priests,  monks,  and  nuns, 
and  thus  earn  a  support  ?  " 

1  For  a  complete  presentation  of  Luther's  pedagogy,  the  author  may  be 
permitted  to  refer  to  his  "  Luther  on  Education  "  (Lutheran  Publication 
Society,  Philadelphia),  which  contains  a  translation  and  systematic  review  of 
nearly  all  that  the  reformer  wrote  on  the  subject. 


172  MARTIN  LUTHER 

The  hollow  piety  and  selfish  aims  of  such  persons  are 
sufficiently  evident  from  their  own  confession.  For  if  they 
sought  anything  more  than  the  temporal  welfare  of  their 
children  in  monasteries  and  the  priesthood,  if  they  were 
deeply  in  earnest  to  secure  the  salvation  and  blessedness  of 
their  children,  they  would  not  lose  interest  in  education  and 
say,  "  if  the  priestly  office  is  abolished,  we  will  not  send 
our  children  to  school."  But  they  would  speak  after  this 
manner :  "  If  it  is  true,  as  the  Gospel  teaches,  that  such  a 
calling  is  dangerous  to  our  children,  teach  us  another  way 
in  which  they  may  be  pleasing  to  God  and  become  truly 
blessed ;  for  we  wish  to  provide  not  alone  for  the  bodies  of 
our  children,  but  also  for  their  souls."  Such  would  be  the 
language  of  faithful  Christian  parents. 

It  is  no  wonder  that  the  devil  meddles  in  the  matter,  and 
influences  groveling  hearts  to  neglect  the  children  and  the 
youth  of  the  country.  Who  can  blame  him  for  it?  He  is 
the  prince  and  god  of  this  world,  and  with  extreme  displeas- 
ure sees  the  Gospel  destroy  his  nurseries  of  vice,  the  monas- 
teries and  priesthood,  in  which  he  corrupts  the  young  beyond 
measure,  a  work  upon  which  his  mind  is  especially  bent. 
How  could  he  consent  to  a  proper  training  of  the  young? 
Truly  he  would  be  a  fool  if  he  permitted  such  a  thing  in  his 
kingdom,  and  thus  consented  to  its  overthrow ;  which  indeed 
would  happen,  if  the  young  should  escape  him,  and  be 
brought  up  to  the  service  of  God. 

Hence  he  acted  wisely  at  the  time  when  Christians  were 
educating  and  bringing  up  their  children  in  a  Christian 
way.  Inasmuch  as  the  youth  of  the  land  would  have  escaped 
him  thus,  and  inflicted  an  irreparable  injury  upon  his  king- 
dom, he  went  to  work  and  spread  his  nets,  established  such 
monasteries,  schools,  and  orders,  that  it  was  not  possible 
for  a  boy  to  escape  him  without  the  miraculous  intervention 
of  God.  But  now  that  he  sees  his  snares  exposed  through 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  173 

the  word  of  God,  he  takes  an  opposite  course,  and  dissuades 
men  from  all  education  whatever.  He  thus  pursues  a  wise 
course  to  maintain  his  kingdom  and  win  the  youth  of  Ger- 
many. And  if  he  secures  them,  if  they  grow  up  under  his 
influence  and  remain  his  adherents,  who  can  gain  any  ad- 
vantage over  him?  He  retains  an  easy  and  peaceful  mas- 
tery over  the  world.  For  any  fatal  wound  to  his  cause 
must  come  through  the  young  who,  brought  up  in  the 
knowledge  of  God,  spread  abroad  the  truth  and  instruct 
others. 

Yet  no  one  thinks  of  this  dreadful  purpose  of  the  devil, 
which  is  being  worked  out  so  quietly  that  it  escapes  obser- 
vation; and  soon  the  evil  will  be  so  far  advanced  that  we 
can  do  nothing  to  prevent  it.  People  fear  the  Turks,  wars, 
and  floods,  for  in  such  matters  they  can  see  what  is  injurious 
or  beneficial ;  but  what  the  devil  has  in  mind  no  one  sees 
or  fears.  Yet  where  we  would  give  a  florin  to  defend 
ourselves  against  the  Turks,  we  should  give  a  hundred 
florins  to  protect  us  against  ignorance,  even  if  only  one  boy 
could  be  taught  to  be  a  truly  Christian  man ;  for  the  good 
such  a  man  can  accomplish  is  beyond  all  computation. 

Therefore  I  beg  you  all,  in  the  name  of  God  and  of  our 
neglected  youth,  not  to  think  of  this  subject  lightly,  as  many 
do  who  do  not  see  what  the  prince  of  this  world  intends. 
For  the  right  instruction  of  youth  is  a  matter  in  which 
Christ  and  all  the  world  are  concerned.  Thereby  are  we 
all  aided.  And  consider  that  great  Christian  zeal  is  needed 
to  overcome  the  silent,  secret,  and  artful  machinations  of 
the  devil.  If  we  must  annually  expend  large  sums  on 
muskets,  roads,  bridges,  dams,  and  the  like,  in  order  that 
the  city  may  have  temporal  peace  and  comfort,  why  should 
we  not  apply  as  much  to  our  poor,  neglected  youth,  in 
order  that  we  may  have  a  skilful  schoolmaster  or  two? 


174  MARTIN  LUTHER 

It  is  indeed  a  sin  and  shame  that  we  must  be  aroused  and 
incited  to  the  duty  of  educating  our  children  and  of  con- 
sidering their  highest  interests,  whereas  nature  itself  should 
move  us  thereto,  and  the  example  of  the  heathen  affords  us 
varied  instruction.  There  is  no  irrational  animal  that  does 
not  care  for  and  instruct  its  young  in  what  they  should 
know,  except  the  ostrich,  of  which  God  says,  "  She  leaveth 
her  eggs  in  the  earth,  and  warmeth  them  in  the  dust ;  and 
is  hardened  against  her  young  ones,  as  though  they  were 
not  hers."  And  what  would  it  avail  if  we  possessed  and 
performed  all  else,  and  became  perfect  saints,  if  we  neglect 
that  for  which  we  chiefly  live,  namely,  to  care  for  the 
young?  In  my  judgment  there  is  no  other  outward  offense 
that  in  the  sight  of  God  so  heavily  burdens  the  world,  and 
deserves  such  heavy  chastisement,  as  the  neglect  to  educate 
children. 

Parents  neglect  this  duty  from  various  causes.  In  the 
first  place,  there  are  some  who  are  so  lacking  in  piety  and 
uprightness  that  they  would  not  do  it  if  they  could,  but,  like 
the  ostrich,  harden  themselves  against  their  own  offspring, 
and  do  nothing  for  them.  In  the  second  place,  the  great 
majority  of  parents  are  unqualified  for  it,  and  do  not  under- 
stand how  children  should  be  brought  up  and  taught.  In 
the  third  place,  even  if  parents  were  qualified  and  willing 
to  do  it  themselves,  yet  on  account  of  other  employments 
and  household  duties,  they  have  no  time  for  it,  so  that 
necessity  requires  us  to  have  teachers  for  public  schools, 
unless  each  parent  employ  a  private  instructor. 

Therefore  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the  mayors  and  councils 
to  exercise  the  greatest  care  over  the  young.  For  since  the 
happiness,  honor,  and  life  of  the  city  are  committed  to  their 
hands,  they  would  be  held  recreant  before  God  and  the 
world,  if  they  did  not  day  and  night,  with  all  their  power, 
seek  its  welfare  and  improvement.  Now  the.  welfare  of  a 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  175 

city  does  not  consist  alone  in  great  treasures,  firm  walls, 
beautiful  houses,  and  munitions  of  war;  indeed,  where  all 
these  are  found,  and  reckless  fools  come  into  power,  the 
city  sustains  the  greater  injury.  But  the  highest  welfare, 
safety,  and  power  of  a  city  consist  in  able,  learned,  wise, 
upright,  cultivated  citizens,  who  can  secure,  preserve,  and 
utilize  every  treasure  and  advantage. 

Since,  then,  a  city  must  have  well-trained  people,  and 
since  the  greatest  need,  lack,  and  lament  is  that  such  are 
not  to  be  found,  we  must  not  wait  till  they  grow  up  of 
themselves ;  neither  can  they  be  hewed  out  of  stones  nor  cut 
out  of  wood;  nor  will  God  work  miracles,  so  long  as  men 
can  attain  their  object  through  means  within  their  reach. 
Therefore  we  must  see  to  it,  and  spare  no  trouble  or  ex- 
pense to  educate  and  form  them  ourselves.  For  whose 
fault  is  it  that  in  all  the  cities  there  are  at  present  so  few 
skilful  people  except  the  rulers,  who  have  allowed  the  young 
to  grow  up  like  trees  in  the  forest,  and  have  not  cared  how 
they  were  reared  and  taught?  The  growth,  consequently, 
has  been  so  irregular  that  the  forest  furnishes  no  timber  for 
building  purposes,  but  like  a  useless  hedge  is  good  only  for 
fuel. 

Yet  there  must  be  civil  government.  For  us,  then,  to 
permit  ignoramuses  and  blockheads  to  rule  when  we  can 
prevent  it,  is  irrational  and  barbarous.  Let  us  rather  make 
rulers  out  of  swine  and  wolves,  and  set  them  over  peoples 
who  are  indifferent  to  the  manner  in  which  they  are  gov- 
erned. It  is  barbarous  for  men  to  think  thus:  "We  will 
now  rule ;  and  what  does  it  concern  us  how  those  fare  who 
shall  come  after  us?"  Not  over  human  beings,  but  over 
swine  and  dogs  should  such  people  rule,  who  think  only 
of  their  own  interests  and  honor  in  governing.  Even  if 
we  exercise  the  greatest  care  to  educate  able,  learned,  and 
skilled  rulers,  yet  much  care  and  effort  are  necessary  in 


i;6  MARTIN  LUTHER 

order  to  secure  prosperity.  How  can  a  city  prosper,  when 
no  effort  is  made? 

But  you  say  again,  if  we  shall  and  must  have  schools, 
what  is  the  use  to  teach  Latin,  Greek,  Hebrew,  and  other 
liberal  arts  ?  Is  it  not  enough  to  teach  the  Scriptures,  which 
are  necessary  to  salvation,  in  the  mother  tongue  ?  To  which 
I  answer:  I  know,  alas!  that  we  Germans  must  always 
remain  irrational  brutes,  as  we  are  deservedly  called  by 
surrounding  nations.  But  I  wonder  why  we  do  not  also 
say:  of  what  use  to  us  are  silk,  wine,  spices,  and  other 
foreign  articles,  since  we  ourselves  have  an  abundance  of 
wine,  corn,  wool,  flax,  wood,  and  stone  in  the  German  states, 
not  only  for  our  necessities,  but  also  for  embellishment  and 
ornament?  The  languages  and  other  liberal  arts,  which 
are  not  only  harmless,  but  even  a  greater  ornament,  benefit, 
and  honor  than  these  things,  both  for  understanding  the 
Holy  Scriptures  and  carrying  on  the  civil  government,  we 
are  disposed  to  despise;  and  the  foreign  articles  which 
are  neither  necessary  nor  useful,  and  which  besides  greatly 
impoverish  us,  we  are  unwilling  to  dispense  with.  Are  we 
not  rightly  called  German  dunces  and  brutes? 

Indeed,  if  the  languages  were  of  no  practical  benefit,  we 
ought  still  to  feel  an  interest  in  them  as  a  wonderful  gift 
of  God,  with  which  he  has  now  blessed  Germany  almost 
beyond  all  other  lands.  We  do  not  find  many  instances 
in  which  Satan  has  fostered  them  through  the  universities 
and  cloisters ;  on  the  contrary,  these  institutions  have  fiercely 
inveighed  and  continue  to  inveigh  against  them.  For  the 
devil  scented-  the  danger  that  would  threaten  his  kingdom, 
if  the  languages  should  be  generally  studied.  But  since  he 
could  not  wholly  prevent  their  cultivation,  he  aims  at  least 
to  confine  them  within  such  narrow  limits  that  they  will  of 
themselves  decline  and  fall  into  disuse.  They  are  to  him 
no  welcome  guest,  and  consequently  he  shows  them  scant 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  177 

courtesy  in  order  that  they  may  not  remain   long.     This 
malicious  trick  of  Satan  is  perceived  by  very  few. 

Therefore,  my  beloved  countrymen,  let  us  open  our  eyes, 
thank  God  for  his  precious  treasure,  and  take  pains  to 
preserve  it  and  to  frustrate  the  design  of  Satan.  For  we 
can  not  deny  that,  although  the  Gospel  has  come  and  daily 
comes  through  the  Holy  Spirit,  it  has  come  by  means  of  the 
languages,  and  through  them  must  increase  and  be  pre- 
served. For  when  God  wished  through  the  apostles  to 
spread  the  Gospel  abroad  in  all  the  world,  he  gave  the 
languages  for  that  purpose ;  and  by  means  of  the  Roman 
empire  he  made  Latin  and  Greek  the  language  of  many 
lands,  that  his  Gospel  mi-ght  speedily  bear  fruit  far  and 
wide.  He  has  done  the  same  now.  For  a  time  no  one 
understood  why  God  had  revived  the  study  of  the  languages  ; 
but  now  we  see  that  it  was  for  the  sake  of  the  Gospel, 
which  he  wished  to  bring  to  light  and  thereby  expose  and 
destroy  the  reign  of  Antichrist.  For  the  same  reason  he 
gave  Greece  a  prey  to  the  Turks,  in  order  that  Greek 
scholars,  driven  from  home  and  scattered  abroad,  might 
bear  the  Greek  tongue  to  other  countries,  and  thereby  excite 
an  interest  in  the  study  of  languages. 

And  let  this  be  kept  in  mind,  that  we  shall  not  preserve 
the  Gospel  without  the  languages.  The  languages  are  the 
scabbard  in  which  the  word  of  God  is  sheathed.  They  are 
the  casket  in  which  this  jewel  is  enshrined;  the  cask  in 
which  this  wine  is  kept ;  the  chamber  in  which  this  food  is 
stored.  And,  to  borrow  a  figure  from  the  Gospel  itself,  they 
are  the  baskets  in  which  this  bread  and  fish  and  fragments 
are  preserved.  If  through  neglect  we  lose  the  languages 
(which  may  God  forbid),  we  shall  not  only  lose  the  Gospel, 
but  it  will  finally  come  to  pass  that  we  shall  lose  also  the 
ability  to  speak  and  write  either  Latin  or  German. 
***** 

PAINTER   PED.    Ess. —  12 


178  MARTIN  LUTHER 

So  much  for  the  utility  and  necessity  of  the  languages, 
and  of  Christian  schools  for  our  spiritual  interests  and  the 
salvation  of  the  soul.  Let  us  now  consider  the  body  and 
inquire :  though  there  were  no  soul,  nor  heaven,  nor  hell, 
but  only  the  civil  government,  would  not  this  require  good 
schools  and  learned  men  more  than  do  our  spiritual  in- 
terests? Hitherto  the  Papists  have  taken  no  interest  in 
civil  government,  and  have  conducted  the  schools  so  entirely 
in  the  interests  of  the  priesthood,  that  it  has  become  a  matter 
of  reproach  for  a  learned  man  to  marry,  and  he  has  been 
forced  to  hear  remarks  like  this :  "  Behold,  he  has  become 
a  man  of  the  world,  and  cares  nothing  for  the  clerical 
state;"  just  as  if  the  priestly  order  were  alone  acceptable  to 
God,  and  the  secular  classes,  as  they  are  called,  belonged 
to  Satan,  and  were  unchristian.  But  in  the  sight  of  God, 
the  former  rather  belong  to  Satan,  while  the  despised  masses, 
as  happened  to  the  people  of  Israel  in  the  Babylonian  cap- 
tivity, remain  in  the  land  and  in  right  relations  with  God. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  say  here  that  civil  government  is  a 
divine  institution;  of  that  I  have  elsewhere  said  so  much, 
that  I  hope  no  one  has  any  doubts  on  the  subject.  The 
question  is,  how  are  we  to  get  able  and  skilful  rulers? 
And  here  we  are  put  to  shame  by  the  heathen  who  in  an- 
cient times,  %  especially  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  without 
knowing  that  civil  government  is  a  divine  ordinance,  yet 
instructed  the  boys  and  girls  with  such  earnestness  and 
industry  that,  when  I  think  of  it,  I  am  ashamed  of  Chris- 
tians, and  especially  of  our  Germans,  who  are  such  block- 
heads and  brutes  that  they  can  say :  "  Pray,  what  is  the  use 
of  schools,  if  one  is  not  to  become  a  priest?"  Yet  we 
know,  or  ought  to  know,  how  necessary  and  useful  a  thing 
it  is,  and  how  acceptable  to  God,  when  a  prince,  lord, 
counselor,  or  other  ruler,  is  well-trained  and  skilful  in  dis- 
charging, in  a  Christian  way,  the  functions  of  his  office. 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  179 

Even  if  there  were  no  soul,  as  I  have  already  said,  and 
men  did  not  need  schools  and  the  languages  for  the  sake 
of  Christianity  and  the  Scriptures,  still,  for  the  establish- 
ment of  the  best  schools  everywhere,  both  for  boys  and 
girls,  this  consideration  is  of  itself  sufficient,  namely,  that 
society,  for  the  maintenance  of  civil  order  and  the  proper 
regulation  of  the  household,  needs  accomplished  and  well- 
trained  men  and  women.  Now  such  men  are  to  come  from 
boys,  and  such  women  from  girls ;  hence  it  is  necessary  that 
boys  and  girls  be  properly  taught  and  brought  up.  As  I 
have  before  said,  the  ordinary  man  is  not  qualified  for  this 
task,  and  cannot  and  will  not  do  it.  Princes  and  lords 
ought  to  do  it;  but  they  spend  their  time  in  pleasure  — 
driving,  drinking,  and  folly,  and  are  burdened  with  the 
weighty  duties  of  the  cellar,  kitchen,  and  bedchamber. 
And  though  some  would  be  glad  to  do  it,  they  must  stand 
in  fear  of  the  rest,  lest  they  be  taken  for  fools  or  heretics. 
Therefore,  honored  members  of  the  city  councils,  this  work 
must  remain  in  your  hands ;  you  have  more  time  and  oppor- 
tunity for  it  than  princes  and  lords. 

But  each  one,  you  say,  may  educate  and  discipline  his 
own  sons  and  daughters.  To  which  I  reply:  we  see  indeed 
how  it  goes  with  this  teaching  and  training.  And  where  it 
is  carried  to  the  highest  point,  and  is  attended  with  success, 
it  results  in  nothing  more  than  that  the  learners,  in  some 
measure,  acquire  a  forced  external  propriety  of  manner; 
in  other  respects  they  remain  dunces,  knowing  nothing,  and 
incapable  of  giving  aid  or  advice.  But  were  they  instructed 
in  schools  or  elsewhere,  by  thoroughly  qualified  male  or 
female  teachers,  who  taught  the  languages,  other  arts,  and 
history,  then  the  pupils  would  hear  the  history  and  maxims 
of  the  world,  and  see  how  things  went  with  each  city, 
kingdom,  prince,  man,  and  woman ;  and  thus,  in  a  short 
time,  they  would  be  able  to  comprehend,  as  in  a  mirror,  the 


i8o  MARTIN  LUTHER 

character,  life,  counsels,  undertakings,  successes,  and  fail- 
ures, of  the  whole  world  from  the  beginning.  From  this 
knowledge  they  could  regulate  their  views,  and  order  their 
course  of  life  in  the  fear  of  God,  having  become  wise  in 
judging  what  is  to  be  sought  and  what  is  to  be  avoided  in 
this  outward  life,  and  capable  of  advising  and  directing 
others.  But  the  training  which  is  given  at  home  is  expected 
to  make  us  wise  through  our  own  experience.  Before  that 
can  take  place,  he  shall  die  a  hundred  times,  and  all  through 
life  act  injudiciously;  for  much  time  is  needed  to  give 
experience. 

Now  since  the  young  must  leap  and  jump,  or  have  some- 
thing to  do,  because  they  have  a  natural  desire  for  it  which 
should  not  be  restrained  (for  it  is  not  well  to  check  them 
in  everything),  why  should  we  not  provide  for  them  such 
schools,  and  lay  before  them  such  studies  ?  By  the  gracious 
arrangement  of  God,  children  take  delight  in  acquiring 
knowledge,  whether  languages,  mathematics,  or  history. 
And  our  schools  are  no  longer  a  hell  or  purgatory,  in  which 
children  are  tortured  over  cases  and  tenses,  and  in  which 
with  much  flogging,  trembling,  anguish,  and  wretchedness 
they  learn  nothing. 

If  we  take  so  much  time  and  pains  to  teach  our  children 
to  play  cards,  sing,  and  dance,  why  should  we  not  take  as 
much  time  to  teach  them  reading  and  other  branches  of 
knowledge,  while  they  are  young  and  at  leisure,  are  quick 
at  learning,  and  take  delight  in  it? 

As  for  myself,  if  I  had  children  and  were  able,  I  would 
have  them  learn  not  only  the  languages  and  history,  but  also 
singing,  instrumental  music,  and  the  whole  course  of 
mathematics.  For  what  is  all  this  but  mere  child's  play, 
in  which  the  Greeks  in  former  ages  trained  their  children, 
and  by  this  means  became  wonderfully  skilful  people,  ca- 
pable for  every  undertaking?  |How  I  regret  that  I  did  not 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  181 

read  more  poetry  and  history,  and  that  no  one  taught  me 
in  these  branches ! 

But  you  say,  who  can  do  without  his  children  and  bring 
them  up,  in  this  manner,  to  be  young  gentlemen?  I  reply: 
it  is  not  my  idea  that  we  should  establish  schools  as  they 
have  been  heretofore,  where  a  boy  has  studied  Donatus  and 
Alexander  twenty  or  thirty  years,  and  yet  has  learned 
nothing.  The  world  has  changed,  and  things  go  differently. 
My  idea  is  that  boys  should  spend  an  hour  or  two  a  day 
in  school,  and  the  rest  of  the  time  work  at  home,  learn 
some  trade  and  do  whatever  is  desired,  so  that  study  and 
work  may  go  on  together,  while  the  children  are  young  and 
can  attend  to  both.  They  now  spend  twofold  as  much  time 
in  shooting  with  crossbows,  playing  ball,  running,  and 
tumbling  about. 

In  like  manner,  a  girl  has  time  to  go  to  school  an  hour 
a  day,  and  yet  attend  to  her  work  at  home ;  for  she  sleeps, 
dances,  and  plays  away  more  than  that.  The  real  difficulty 
is  found  alone  in  the  absence  of  an  earnest  desire  to  edu- 
cate the  young,  and  to  aid  and  benefit  mankind  with  accom- 
plished citizens.  The  devil  much  prefers  blockheads  and 
drones,  that  men  may  have  more  abundant  trials  and  sor- 
rows in  the  world. 

•  But  the  brightest  pupils,  who  give  promise  of  becoming 
accomplished  teachers,  preachers,  and  workers,  should  be 
kept  longer  at  school,  or  set  apart  wholly  for  study,  as  we 
read  of  the  holy  martyrs,  who  brought  up  St.  Agnes,  St. 
Agatha,  St.  Lucian,  and  others.  For  this  purpose  also  the 
cloisters  and  cathedral  schools  were  founded,  but  they  have 
been  perverted  into  another  and  accursed  one.  There  is 
great  need  for  such  instruction;  for  the  tonsured  crowd  is 
rapidly  decreasing,  and  besides,  for  the  most  part,  the 
monks  are  unskilled  to  teach  and  rule,  since  they  know 
nothing  but  to  care  for  their  stomachs,  the  only  thing  they 


i&z  MARTIN  LUTHER 

have  been  taught.  Hence  we  must  have  persons  qualified 
to  dispense  the  word  of  God  and  the  Sacraments,  and  to  be 
pastors  of  the  people.  But  where  shall  we  obtain  them,  if 
schools  are  not  established  on  a  more  Christian  basis,  since 
those  hitherto  maintained,  even  if  they  do  not  go  down, 
can  produce  nothing  but  depraved  and  dangerous  corrupters 
of  youth  ? 

There  is  consequently  an  urgent  necessity,  not  only  for 
the  sake  of  the  young,  but  also  for  the  maintenance  of 
Christianity  and  of  civil  government,  that  this  matter  be 
immediately  and  earnestly  taken  hold  of,  lest  afterwards, 
although  we  should  gladly  attend  to  it,  we  shall  find  it  im- 
possible to  do  so,  and  be  obliged  to  feel  in  vain  the  pangs 
of  remorse  forever.  For  God  is  now  graciously  present, 
and  offers  his  aid.  Consider,  for  example,  what  great  zeal 
Solomon  manifested;  for  he  was  so  much  interested  in  the 
young  that  he  took  time,  in  the  midst  of  his  imperial  duties, 
to  write  a  book  for  them  called  Proverbs.  And  think  how 
Christ  himself  took  the  little  children  in  his  arms !  How 
earnestly  he  commends  them  to  us,  and  speaks  of  their 
guardian  angels,  in  order  that  he  may  show  us  how  great 
a  service  it  is,  when  we  rightly  bring  them  up ;  on  the  other 
hand  how  his  anger  kindles,  if  we  offend  the  little  ones, 
and  let  them  perish. 

Therefore,  dear  Sirs,  take  to  heart  this  work,  which  God 
so  urgently  requires  at  your  hands,  which  pertains  to  your 
office,  which  is  necessary  for  the  young,  and  which  neither 
the  world  nor  the  Spirit  can  do  without.  We  have,  alas! 
lived  and  degenerated  long  enough  in  darkness;  we  have 
remained  German  brutes  too  long.  Let  us  use  our  reason, 
that  God  may  observe  in  us  gratitude  for  his  mercies,  and 
that  other  lands  may  see  that  we  are  human  beings,  capable 
both  of  learning  and  of  teaching,  in  order  that  through  us, 
also,  the  world  may  be  made  better. 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  183 

Finally,  this  must  be  taken  into  consideration  by  all  who 
earnestly  desire  to  see  such  schools  established  and  the 
languages  preserved  in  the-  German  states;  that  no  cost 
nor  pains  should  be  spared  to  procure  good  libraries  in 
suitable  buildings,  especially  in  the  large  cities  that  are 
able  to  afford  it.  For  if  a  knowledge  of  the  Gospel  and  of 
every  kind  of  learning  is  to  be  preserved,  it  must  be  em- 
bodied in  books,  as  the  prophets  and  apostles  did,  as  I  have 
already  shown.  This  should  be  done,  not  only  that  our 
spiritual  and  civil  leaders  may  have  something  to  read  and 
study,  but  also  that  good  books  may  not  be  lost,  and  that 
the  arts  and  languages  may  be  preserved,  with  which  God 
has  graciously  favored  us. 

All  the  kingdoms  that  have  been  distinguished  in  the 
world  have  bestowed  care  upon  this  matter,  and  particularly 
the  Israelites,  among  whom  Moses  was  the  first  to 
begin  the  work,  who  commanded  them  to  preserve  the  book 
of  the  law  in  the  ark  of  God,  and  put  it  under  the  care  of  the 
Levites,  that  any  one  might  procure  copies  from  them. 
He  even  commanded  the  king  to  make  a  copy  of  this  book 
in  the  hands  of  the  Levites.  Among  other  duties  God 
directed  the  Levitical  priesthood  to  preserve  and  attend  to 
the  books.  Afterwards  Joshua  increased  and  improved  this 
library,  as  did  Samuel  subsequently,  and  David,  Solomon, 
Isaiah,  and  many  kings  and  prophets.  Hence  have  come  to 
us  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Testament,  which  would 
not  otherwise  have  been  collected  and  preserved,  if  God 

had  not  required  such  diligence  in  regard  to  it. 
***** 

Has  it  not  been  a  grievous  misfortune  that  a  boy  has 
hitherto  been  obliged  to  study  twenty  years  or  longer,  in 
order  to  learn  enough  miserable  Latin  to  become  a  priest 
and  to  read  mass?  And  whoever  has  succeeded  in  this 
has  been  called  blessed,  and  blessed  the  mother  that  has 


184  MARTIN  LUTHER 

borne  such  a  child !  And  yet  he  has  remained  a  poor 
ignorant  man  all  through  life,  and  has  been  of  no  real  serv- 
ice whatever.  Everywhere  we  have  had  such  teachers 
and  masters,  who  have  known  nothing  themselves,  who 
have  been  able  to  teach  nothing  useful,  and  who  have  been 
ignorant  even  of  the  right  methods  of  learning  and  teach- 
ing. How  has  it  come  about?  No  books  have  been 
accessible  but  the  senseless  trash  of  the  monks  and  sophists. 
How  could  the  pupils  and  teachers  differ  from  the  books 
they  studied?  A  jackdaw  does  not  hatch  a  dove,  nor  a 
fool  make  a  wise  man.  That  is  the  recompense  of  our 
ingratitude,  in  that  we  did  not  use  diligence  in  the  forma- 
tion of  libraries,  but  allowed  good  books  to  perish,  and  bad 
ones  to  survive. 

But  my  advice  is,  not  to  collect  all  sorts  of  books  indis- 
criminately, thinking  only  of  getting  a  vast  number  to- 
gether. I  would  have  discrimination  used,  because  it  is  not 
necessary  to  collect  the  commentaries  of  all  the  jurists,  the 
productions  of  all  the  theologians,  the  discussions  of  all 
the  philosophers,  and  the  sermons  of  all  the  monks. 

In  the  first  place,  a  library  should  contain  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures in  Latin,  Greek,  Hebrew,  German,  and  other  languages. 
Then  the  best  and  most  ancient  commentators  in  Greek, 
Hebrew,  and  Latin. 

Secondly,  such  books  as  are  useful  in  acquiring  the  lan- 
guages,   as    the    poets    and    orators,    without    considering 
whether  they  are   heathen   or   Christian,    Greek  or  Latin. 
For  it  is  from  such  works  that  grammar  must  be  learned. 
Thirdly,  books  treating  of  all  the  arts  and  sciences. 
Lastly,    books    on    jurisprudence   and   medicine,    though 
here  discrimination  is  necessary. 

A  prominent  place  should  be  given  to  chronicles  and 
histories,  in  whatever  languages  they  may  be  obtained;  for 
they  are  wonderfully  useful  in  understanding  and  regulat- 


SELECTION  FROM  MARTIN  LUTHER  185 

ing  the  course  of  the  world,  and  in  disclosing  the  mar- 
velous works  of  God.  O  how  many  noble  deeds  and  wise 
maxims  produced  on  German  soil  have  been  forgotten  and 
lost,  because  no  one  at  the  time  wrote  them  down;  or  if 
they  were  written,  no  one  preserved  the  books:  hence  we 
Germans  are  unknown  in  other  lands,  and  are  called  brutes 
that  know  only  how  to  fight,  eat,  and  drink.  But  the 
Greeks  and  Romans,  and  even  the  Hebrews,  have  recorded 
their  history  with  such  particularity,  that  even  if  a  woman 
or  child  did  anything  noteworthy,  all  the  world  was  obliged 
to  read  and  know  it ;  but  we  Germans  are  always  Germans, 
and  will  remain  Germans. 

Since  God  has  so  graciously  and  abundantly  provided  us 
with  art,  scholars,  and  books,  it  is  time  for  us  to  reap  the 
harvest  and  gather  for  future  use  the  treasures  of  these 
golden  years.  For  it  is  to  be  feared  (and  even  now  it  is 
beginning  to  take  place),  that  new  and  different  books  will 
be  produced,  until  at  last,  through  the  agency  of  the  devil, 
the  good  books  which  are  being  printed,  will  be  crowded 
out  by  the  multitude  of  ill-considered,  senseless,  and 
noxious  works. 

Therefore,  my  dear  Sirs,  I  beg  you  to  let  my  labor  bear 
fruit  with  you.  And  though  there  be  some  who  think  me 
too  insignificant  to  follow  my  advice,  or  who  look  down 
on  me  as  one  condemned  by  tyrants:  still  let  them  con- 
sider that  I  am  not  seeking  my  own  interest,  but  that  of 
all  Germany.  And  even  if  I  were  a  fool,  and  should  hit 
upon  something  good,  no  wise  man  should  think  it  a  dis- 
grace to  follow  me.  And  even  if  I  were  a  Turk  and 
heathen,  and  it  should  yet  appear  that  my  advice  was  ad- 
vantageous, not  for  myself,  but  for  Christianity,  no  reason- 
able person  would  despise  my  counsel.  Sometimes  a  fool 
has  given  better  advice  than  a  whole  company  of  wise  men. 
Moses  received  instruction  from  Jethro. 


i86  MARTIN  LUTHER 

Herewith  I  commend  you  all  to  the  grace  of  God.  May 
he  soften  your  hearts,  and  kindle  therein  a  deep  interest 
in  behalf  of  the  poor,  wretched,  and  neglected  youth ;  and 
through  the  blessing  of  God  may  you  so  counsel  and  aid 
them  as  to  attain  to  a  happy  Christian  social  order  in  respect 
to  both  body  and  soul,  with  all  fullness  and  abounding 
plenty,  to  the  praise  and  honor  of  God  the  Father,  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Savior.  Amen. 

Wittenberg,  1524. 


XIII.    THE  JESUITS. 
HISTORICAL  SKETCH. 

The  order  of  the  Jesuits,  or  the  Society  of  Jesus,  was 
founded  in  1534  by  the  celebrated  Ignatius  of  Loyola.  Its 
members  have  always  been  characterized  by  a  spirit  of 
utter  self-abnegation,  which  has  given  the  order  great  in- 
fluence and  success  in  missionary  and  educational  work. 
Though  at  various  times  it  has  encountered  strong  secular 
and  ecclesiastical  opposition,  it  still  survives  as  a  potent 
organization  within  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 

The  Constitutions  of  the  order  were  begun  by  Ignatius 
himself  in  1541.  They  consist  of  ten  parts,  of  which  the 
fourth  part  is  devoted  to  education.  It  is  divided  into 
seventeen  chapters,  the  subjects  of  which  are  as  follows: 
(i)  Founders  and  Benefactors  of  the  Colleges;  (2)  Tem- 
poral Affairs  of  the  Colleges;  (3)  Admission  of  Students 
to  the  Colleges;  (4)  Maintenance  of  Students;  (5)  Studies 
to  be  Pursued;  (6)  Means  of  Promoting  the  Progress  of 
Students;  (7)  Schools  of  the  Colleges;  (8)  Instruction 
Preparing  Students  to  be  Spiritually  Helpful  to  Others 
(9)  Dismission  of  Students;  (10)  Government  of  the  Col- 
leges; (n)  Establishment  of  Universities;  (12)  Sciences 
to  be  Taught  at  the  Universities;  (13)  Method  and  Order 
of  the  Faculties;  (14)  Books  to  be  Read;  (15)  Courses  and 
Degrees;  (16)  Moral  Regulations;  (17)  Officials  of  the 
University. 

This  fourth  part  of  the  Constitutions  is  the  foundation, 
upon  which  the  famous  Ratio  Studiorum,  or  the  pedagogical 

187 


i88  THE  JESUITS 

system  of  the  Jesuits,  has  been  built.  The  Ratio  Studiorum, 
after  fifteen  years  of  careful  elaboration,  was  first  published 
in  1599;  and  though  it  underwent  some  slight  modification 
in  1832,  it  has  remained  without  material  change  for  more 
than  three  centuries,  and  determined  the  administration  and 
instruction  of  hundreds  of  colleges.  It  covers  something 
more  than  a  hundred  pages,  and  in  place  of  pedagogical 
principles,  which  are  rarely  introduced,  it  prescribes,  in  great 
detail,  the  duties  of  the  several  officers,  and  the  subjects  and 
methods  of  the  various  teachers. 

The  following  translation,  which  is  sufficiently  extended, 
it  is  hoped,  to  give  a  general  insight  into  the  pedagogy  of 
the  Jesuits,  has  been  made  from  Pachtler's  "  Monumenta 
Germaniae  Pedagogica,"  which  contains  the  Ratio  Studiorum 
both  in  Latin  and  German. 

SELECTION  FROM  THE  "  RATIO  STUDIORUM." 

SYSTEM    AND    PLAN    OF    STUDIES    OF    THE    SOCIETY    OF    JESUS. 

1.  Since  it  is  one  of  the  weightiest  duties  of  our  society 
to  teach  men  all  the  branches  of  knowledge  in  keeping  with 
our  organization  in  such  a  manner,  that  they  may  be  moved 
thereby  to  a  knowledge  and  love  of  our  Creator  and  Re- 
deemer, let  the  Provincial  hold  it  as  his  duty,  to  provide  with 
all  zeal,  that  the  results,  which  the  grace  of  our  vocation 
demands,  abundantly  answer  to  our  manifold  labors  in  ed- 
ucation. 

2.  Long  before  let  him  [the  Provincial]  consider  whom 
he  can  take  as  professors  in  each  department,  and  take  heed 
to  those  who  seem  to  be  best  fitted  for  the  place,  who  are 
learned,   diligent,  and  assiduous,  and  are  zealous   for  the 
progress  of  their  students  in  their  lectures  as  well  as  in  their 
other  literarv  exercises. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"       189 

3.  Let  him  promote  with  great  care  the  study  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures ;  in  which  he  will  succeed,  if  he  selects  for 
this  office  men  who  are  not  only  proficient  in  the  languages 
(for  that  is  especially  necessary),  but  also  well  versed  in 
theology  and  the  other  sciences,  in  history  and  in  general 
learning,  and  also,  as  far  as  possible,  in  eloquence. 

4.  But  he  must  especially  remember  that  only  men  who 
are  well  disposed  to  St.  Thomas  are  to  be  promoted  to 
theological  chairs.     Whoever  is  indifferent  to  him  or  is  not 
studious  of  him  shall  be  removed  from  the  office  of  teach- 
ing. 

5.  The  professors  of  philosophy,  except  when  the  gravest 
necessity  calls  for  an  exception,  must  not  simply  complete 
the  course  in  theology,  but  also  repeat  it  for  two  years,  in 
order  that  their  teaching  may  be  the  safer  and  more  service- 
able to  theology.     Should  any,  however,  be  inclined  to  in- 
novating opinions  or  exhibit  too  liberal  a  spirit,  they  must 
undoubtedly  be  removed  from  the  office  of  teaching. 

6.  When  students  have  entered  upon  the  philosophical 
course,  they  must  undergo  a  rigid  examination  at  the  end 
of  the  year  given  by  the  appointed  examiners  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  rector,  and  if  possible,  of  the  Provincial  himself. 
No  one  may  pass  from  the  first  to  the  second  year  of  philos- 
ophy, unless  he  has  reached  mediocrity,  that  is,  so  that  he 
understands  well  what  he  hears  and  can  give  an  account  of 
it.     But  no  one  shall  be  admitted  to  scholastic  theology  who 
has  not  risen  above  mediocrity  in  the  philosophical  course, 
so  that  he  can   defend  and  maintain  philosophical  theses 
with  applause;  except  in  the  case  that  such  mediocre  dis- 
plays a  distinguished  talent  for  administration  or  preaching, 
on  which  account  the  Provincial  may  dispose  of  his  case 
otherwise,  though  in  other  things  he  has  no  power  to  grant 
dispensations. 

7.  These  examinations,  in  which  it  is  decided  whether 


igo  THE  JESUITS 

the  students  of  philosophy  or  theology  shall  pass  to  the  fol- 
lowing years,  shall  take  place  by  secret  ballot ;  and  the  de- 
cision arrived  at,  together  with  the  judgment  of  the  ex- 
aminers, shall  be  entered  in  a  book  designed  for  that 
purpose ;  and  all  who  were  present  at  the  examination  shall 
maintain  silence  about  it. 

8.  Schools   for  lower  studies  must  not  exceed  five  in 
number,  namely,  one  for  rhetoric,  the  second  for  humanity, 
and  three  for  grammar.     For  these  are  five  grades  so  in- 
timately connected  that  they  must  not  be  confused  or  in- 
creased in  number. 

9.  Furthermore,  care  must  be  exercised  that  where  there 
are  too  few  schools,  always  the  higher  classes,  so  far  as 
possible,  must  be  retained,  and  the  lower  classes  given  up. 

10.  In  order  to  preserve  a  knowledge  of  classical  litera- 
ture  and  to  establish   a   sort  of   nursery   for   gymnasium 
teachers,  let  him  [the  Provincial]  endeavor  to  have  in  his 
province  at  least  two  or  three  men  distinguished  in  these 
services  and  in  eloquence.     To  this  end,  from  the  number 
of  those  who  are  capable  and  inclined  to  these  studies,  he 
shall  set  apart  for  that  work  alone  a  few  who  are  sufficiently 
instructed  in  the  other  departments,  in  order  that  through 
their  efforts  and  activity  a  body  of  good  teachers  may  be 
maintained  and  provided  for  the  future. 

11.  Let    him    procure    as    many    life-long    teachers    of 
grammar  and  rhetoric  as  possible.     This  he  will  be  able  to 
do,  if  at  the  close  of  their  ethical  or  even  theological  studies 
he  earnestly  directs  and  exhorts  to  the  teacher's  vocation 
some,  from  whose  help  he  can  expect  in  the  Lord  greater 
results  in  this  office  than  in  any  other,  that  they  may  wholly 
dedicate  themselves  to  so  salutary  a  work  for  the  greater 
service  of  God. 

12.  With  all  diligence  let  him  watch  and  esteem  it  a 
matter  of  the  highest  importance  that  all  books  of  the  poets 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"       191 

and  other  writings,  which  might  prove  injurious  to  char- 
acter and  good  manners,  be  kept  from  our  schools,  until 
they  have  been  purged  of  impure  passages  and  words ;  and 
should  this  expurgation  not  be  possible,  the  books  shall 
rather  not  be  read,  in  order  that  their  contents  may  not 
contaminate  the  purity  of  the  soul. 

13.  Let  still  greater  care  be  exercised  in  the  case  of  na- 
tive writers,  where  the  reading  of  such  authors  is  customary 
in  the  schools.     These  authors  shall  be  carefully  selected, 
and  none  shall  ever  be  read  or  praised,  in  whom  the  young 
may  not  take  an  interest  without  danger  to  their  faith  and 
morals.     Therefore,  men  well  versed  in  the  native  literature 
shall  be  consulted,  in  order  to  determine  what  may  be  done 
in  this  matter  without  injury,  and  then  see  to  it  that  what 
has  been  determined,  be  also  conscientiously  observed  by 
the  prefects  and  teachers  of  the  schools. 

14.  Let  him  [the  Rector]  see  to  it  that  the  use  of  the 
Latin  language  is  diligently  maintained  among  the  students ; 
from  this  requirement  of  speaking  Latin  only  holidays  and 
recreation  hours  are  to  be  excepted,  unless  the  Provincial 
finds  it  advisable  in  certain  localities  to  retain  the  use  of 
Latin  also  on  such  days.     He  may  also  insist  that  our  stu- 
dents, who  have  not  yet  completed  their  course  of  study, 
write  their  letters  to  other  brethren  of  the  order  in  Latin. 
Besides  this  our  philosophical  and  theological  students,  two 
or  three  times  a  year,  at  the  opening  of  a  session  or  the 
renewal  of  their  vows,  shall  compose  and  publicly  post  some 
poetical  production. 

15.  The  subject-matter  of  tragedies  and  comedies,  which 
however  shall  be  only  in  Latin  and  seldom  acted,  shall  be 
of  a  sacred  and  pious  character;  the  interludes  also  shall 
be  in  Latin  and  of  due  decorum ;  female  roles  and  costumes 
are  prohibited. 

16.  Prizes  may  be  publicly  distributed  once  a  year,  pro- 


i92  THE  JESUITS 

vided  they  be  of  moderate  cost,  according  to  the  number 
of  students  and  the  grade  of  the  college.  But  if  any  one 
provides  the  necessary  cost  for  this  purpose,  his  name  must 
be  honorably  mentioned  at  the  distribution  of  prizes. 

17.  The  lower  schools  shall  have  a  weekly  recess  of  a 
whole  day  or  a  half  day,  according  to  the  custom  of  the 
locality. 

1 8.  At  all  disputations,  at  which  the  professors  of  the- 
ology or  philosophy  are  present,  the  Prefect  must  preside ; 
he  must  give  the  disputants  the  sign  to  begin,  and  divide 
the  time  in  such  a  manner  that  each  one  may  have  his  turn 
in  the  discussion.     He  must  let  no  difficulty  which  comes 
into  the  discussion  be  bandied  about  so  that  it  remains  just 
as  obscure  afterwards  as  it  was  before ;  but  when  it  has  been 
sufficiently  discussed  on  both  sides,  let  him  have  it  care- 
fully explained  by  the  first  defendant.     For  he  himself  shall 
not  answer  objections,  but  rather  direct  the  advocates  and 
defendants ;  an  office  which  he  will  fulfil  with  more  dignity, 
if  he  helps,  not  through   arguments    (which   however   he 
may  sometimes  make)   but  through  questions,  to  solve  the 
difficulty. 

19.  Nothing  shall  be  publicly  delivered  in  the  House  or 
out  of  it,  either  by  those  who  are  promoted  to  degrees  or  by 
those  who  hold  general  or  particular  disputations  or  by  the 
students  of  rhetoric,  unless  it  has  first  been  examined  and 
approved. 

20.  Let  him  [the  Prefect]  exercise  care  that  the  students 
have  neither  a  lack  of  useful  books  nor  a  superfluity  of  use- 
less books.     Therefore,  he   shall   early  remind  the  rector, 
that  our  students,  and  those  residing  out  of  the  House,  may 
not  suffer  a  lack  of  the  books  which  they  need  daily  or  for 
the  coming  year. 

21.  He  shall  not  grant  to  the  students  of  theology  and 
philosophy  all  the  books   they  may   desire,   but   with   the 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STVDlORUM"      193 

knowledge  of  the  rector  and  the  advice  of  the  teachers,  suit- 
able books :  namely,  to  the  theologues,  besides  the  author 
read  in  the  school,  the  Summa  of  St.  Thomas  [Aquinas] 
and  a  commentary  thereto  or  another  select  author,  further 
the  Council  of  Trent  together  with  a  Bible,  in  the  reading 
of  which  he  shall  be  at  home.  Whether  they  shall  have  a 
holy  Father  or  a  writer  of  Church  history,  he  may  consider 
with  the  rector. 

To  the  students  of  philosophy,  besides  the  text-book  he 
may  assign,  if  it  seems  good  to  him,  another  approved 
author.  Besides,  let  him  give  to  every  theological  and  philo- 
sophical student  a  book  from  classic  literature,  and  admonish 
them  not  to  neglect  the  reading  of  the  same  at  certain  suit- 
able hours. 

22.  The  special  aim  of  the  teacher,  in  his  lectures  on 
suitable  occasion  and  elsewhere,   should  be  to  inspire  his 
pupils  to  the  service  and  love  of  God  and  to  the  exercise  of 
the  virtues  through  which  we  may  please  him,  and  to  lead 
them  to  recognize  this  as  the  sole  end  of  their  studies. 

23.  In  those  questions  which  are  left  free  to  personal 
judgment,  let  him  defend  his  own  opinion  in  such  a  manner 
as  modestly  and  benevolently  to  consider  the  reputation  of 
the  other  party  and  still  more  of  his  predecessor  in  case  the 
latter  taught   differently.     If  the  different  authors  can  be 
brought  into  agreement,  it  is  desirable  that  this  should  not 
be  neglected.     Finally,   let  him   be  modest  in  naming  or 
confuting  authors. 

24.  Even  when  no  danger  to  faith  and  piety  is  involved, 
no  one,  in  subjects  of  any  importance,  shall  bring  forward, 
without  previous  consultation  with  the  authorities,  new  ques- 
tions or  any  opinion  which  is  not  held  by  some  reputable 
author,  nor  present  any  views  contrary  to  the  teachings  of 
the  doctors  and  against  the  general  view  of  the  existing 
schools.     Rather    shall   they    all    follow    carefully   the   ap- 

PAINTER    FED.    Ess. —    13 


194  THE  JESUITS 

proved  teachers,  and  cling  to  that  which  through  long  years 
has  been  especially  accepted  in  Catholic  academies. 

25.  Let  him  not  bring  forward  useless,  obsolete,  absurd, 
or  manifestly  false  opinions,  nor  continue  too  long  in  men- 
tioning and  refuting  them.     Let  him  seek  to  establish  his 
conclusions  not  so  much  by  the  number  as  by  the  weight  of 
his  arguments.     Let  him  not  digress  to  foreign  materials 
nor  use  his  own  too  diffusely  or  in  a  wrong  connection.     Let 
him  not  heap  up  a  mass  of  possible  objections,  but  only 
bring  forward  briefly  the  weightiest  of  them,  unless  their 
refutation  is  easily  manifest  from  the  fundamental  principles 
already  laid  down. 

26.  In  quoting  learned  authorities  he  shall  not  go  to  ex- 
cess ;  but  if  he  adduces  the  testimony  of  distinguished  au- 
thors to  confirm  his  position,  let  him  briefly  and  faithfully 
cite,  if  possible,  the  very  words;  this  he  must  do  especially 
in  passages  from  the  Sacred  Scriptures,  Councils,  and  the 
holy  Fathers.     But  for  the  sake  of  his  dignity  hardly  any 
author  is  to  be  cited  that  he  has  not  read  himself. 

27.  Let  him  often  question  his  pupils  about  the  lecture, 
and  insist  on  repetition.     But  after  the  lecture  let  him  re- 
main in  or  near  the  school,  that  his  hearers  may  be  able  to 
question  him. 

28.  Also  in  the  House,  except  on  Saturdays,  holidays, 
and  festival  days,  an  hour  must  be  assigned  our  students 
for  repetition  and  disputation  in  order  that  in  this  manner 
the  mind  may  be  exercised  and  the  occurring  difficulties 
cleared  up.     Therefore,  one  or  two  should  be  designated 
to  repeat  the  lesson  by  heart  in  not  more  than  a  quarter  of 
an  hour;  then  one  or  two  shall  assail  the  conclusion,  while 
just  as  many  defend  it;  and  if  afterwards  there  is  sufficient 
time,  all  sorts  of  doubts  may  be  proposed.     But  in  order 
that  there  may  be  time,  the  professor  must  insist  strenuously 
upon  the  syllogistic  form  in  disputation,  and  when  nothing 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"      195 

new  is  any  longer  brought  forward,  he  must  at  once  cut  off 
the  discussion. 

29.  Toward  the  end  of  the  school  year  reviews  are  to  be 
so  arranged  that,   if  possible,  all  the  lessons  may  be  re- 
peated before  the  beginning  of  vacation. 

30.  Finally  let  him    [the  professor]    with  the  help  of 
divine  grace  be  diligent  and  assiduous  in  all  things,  and  seek 
the  progress  of  his  students  not  only  in  their  lessons  but  also 
in  their  other  exercises ;  and  let  him  not  be  more  familiar 
with  one  student  than  with  another ;  let  him  despise  none, 
and  let  him  care  for  the  studies  of  the  poor  as  of  the  rich ; 
let  him  promote  the  progress  of  each  student  individually. 

31.  Let  him  [the  professor  of  Holy  Scripture]  recognize 
it  as  his  principal  duty,  piously,  learnedly,  and  thoroughly 
to  explain  the  books  given  of  God,  according  to  their  genuine 
and  liberal  sense,  which  confirms  the  right  faith  in  God  and 
the  principles  of  good  morals.     Among  other  ends  which 
he  is  to  pursue,  let  this  stand  as  chief,  that  he  is  to  defend  the 
translation    (Vulgate)    approved  by  the  Church. 

32.  As   to   other   translations,   whether   later   Latin   or 
vernacular     ...     let  him  undertake  the  refutation  only 
of  weighty  and  easily  corrupting  errors ;  on  the  other  hand 
let  him  not  pass  over  what  is  favorable  to  the  Latin  Vulgate 
and  the  mysteries  of  our  faith,  especially  when  it  is  found 
in  the  Septuagint,  which  is  always  to  be  spoken  of  rev- 
erently. 

33.  When  the  canons  of  the  popes  or  councils,  especially 
the  general  councils,  indicate  the  literal  sense  of  a  passage 
of  Scripture  as  the  true  one,  let  him  also  by  all  means  de- 
fend it  and  adduce  no  other  literal  sense,  except  where  spe- 
cial reasons  exist.     When  they  employ  a  text  expressly  as 
proof  of  an  article  of  faith,  let  him  teach  likewise  that  this 
is  the  indubitable  sense,  whether  literal  or  mystical. 

34.  Let  him   reverently  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  the 


196  THE  JESUITS 

holy  Fathers ;  when  they  are  agreed  about  the  literal  or 
allegorical  sense  of  a  passage,  especially  when  they  ex- 
pressly say  so  and  purposely  treat  of  passages  of  Scripture 
or  articles  of  faith,  let  him  not  depart  from  that  sense ;  but 
where  they  are  not  agreed,  let  him  choose  from  their  dif- 
ferent expositions  what  the  Church  for  years  and  with  great 
unanimity  has  preferred. 

35.  When  he  comes  upon  a  text,  over  which  we  are  in 
controversy  with  heretics,  or  which  is  quoted  on  both  sides 
in  theological  discussions,  let  him  expound  it  simply,  yet 
thoroughly  and  vigorously,  especially  against  heretics,  and 
point  out  what  weight  is  in  the  passage  for  deciding  the 
question  at  issue ;  all  the  rest  let  him  lay  aside,  in  order  that 
he,  mindful  of  his  vocation,  may  be  simply  an  expounder  of 
the  Holy  Scriptures. 

36.  Let  him  [the  professor  of  theology]  regard  it  as  his 
function  so  to  unite  thorough  subtlety  of  investigation  with 
the  true  faith  and  with  piety,  that  it  may  be  subordinate  and 
serviceable  to  them. 

37.  In  scholastic  theology  our  members  shall  follow  the 
doctrine  of  St.  Thomas,  consider  him  as  their  true  teacher, 
and  take  great  pains  that  our  students  develop  the  utmost 
fondness  for  him.     Yet  it  must  not  be  thought  that  they  are 
so  bound  to  St.  Thomas,  that  they  may  not  deviate  from  him 
in  any  point ;  for  even  those  who  especially  profess  to  be  fol- 
lowers of  St.  Thomas,  sometimes  deviate  from  him;  and  it 
would  not  be  right  to  bind  our  people  to  St.  Thomas  more 
strictly  than  the  Thomists  themselves. 

38.  In  teaching,  confirmation  of  faith  and  growth   in 
piety  must  above  all  be  considered.     Therefore  in  questions, 
which  St.  Thomas  has  not  expressly  handled,  no  one  shall 
teach  anything  that  does  not  well  harmonize  with  the  views 
of  the  Church  and  the  generally  received  traditions,  and  that 
in  any  way  disturbs  the  foundation  of  genuine  piety. 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"       197 

39.  If   it  is   known   that  certain   views  of  any  author 
would  seriously  offend  the  Catholics  in  a  province  or  acad- 
emy, let  them  not  be  taught  and  defended  there.     For  where 
neither  the  doctrine  of  faith  nor  the  purity  of  morals  is  in 
danger,  a  wise  charity  demands  that  our  people  accommo- 
date themselves  to  those  with  whom  they  dwell. 

40.  Let  him  [the  professor  of  Church  history]  treat  the 
history  of  the  Church  with  the  view  and  with  such  skill, 
that  he  may  render  the  study  of  theology  more  easy  for  his 
students,  and  more  deeply  impress  upon  their  minds  the 
dogmas  of  faith  and  the  canons. 

41.  Let  him  clearly  demonstrate  that  the  rights  of  the 
Church  and  of  its  head  rest  upon  antiquity,  and  let  him  show 
that  the  statements  of  innovators  about  the  late  origin  of 
such  rights  are  pure  inventions. 

42.  Let  him  draw  his  exposition  of  history  from  un- 
adulterated sources,  and  when  it  can  be  easily  done,   let 
him  use  the  words  of  the  authors  themselves ;  let  him  show 
how  the  innovators  have  often  corrupted  the  original  state- 
ments. 

43.  Questions  of  doctrine  and  ecclesiastical  law  he  must 
not  treat  himself,  but  hand  them  over  to  the  proper  pro- 
fessors ;  but  at  the  same  time  he  must  consider  it  his  duty 
to  go  over  them  historically  and  to  establish  them  by  facts 
themselves. 

44.  Inasmuch  as  philosophy  prepares  the  mind  for  the- 
ology and  other  departments  of  study,  contributes  to  their 
perfect  comprehension  and  practical  application,  and  pro- 
motes in  itself  the  culture  of  the  understanding  and  con- 
sequently the  perfection  of  the  will,  let  the  teacher  present 
it  with  due  clearness,  and  honestly  seek  in  all  things  the 
honor  and  glory  of  God,  so  that  he  may  prepare  his  students 
for  other  sciences,  but  especially  for  theology,  equip  them 
with  the  weapons  of  truth  against  the  errors  of  the  inno- 


ip8  THE  JESUITS 

vators,  and  encourage  them  above  all  to  a  recognition  of 
their  Creator. 

45.  In  all  important  questions  he  must  not  deviate  from 
the  teaching  everywhere  accepted  in  the  academies.    Let  him 
defend  the  orthodox  faith  with  his  might,  and  seek  thor- 
oughly to  refute  the  philosophical  systems  and  arguments 
directed  against  it.     Finally  let  him  not  forget  in  the  choice 
of  different  opinions  that  theology  must  light  the  way. 

46.  Those   philosophers   who   have   been   unfriendly   to 
the  Christian  religion  he  must  not  read  without  great  dis- 
crimination or  discuss  them  in  the  school ;  let  him  beware 
lest  his  pupils  conceive  an  affection  for  them.     If  he  quotes 
anything  good  from  them,  let  him  do  so  without  praise,  and 
show,  if  possible,  that  they  have  borrowed  it  elsewhere. 

47.  On  the  contrary  let  him  always  speak  reverently  of 
St.  Thomas ;  let  him  follow  him  gladly,  as  often  as  possible, 
and   deviate   from  him   only  unwillingly  and   respectfully, 
when  he  finds  less  pleasure  in  him. 

48.  Monthly   disputations   shall  be  held,  at  which  the 
defendant  shall  briefly  and  philosophically  establish  one  or 
two  theses,  and  besides  a  professor  invited  to  advocate  the 
affirmative,  the  students  of  the  higher  class  shall  debate  with 
those  of  the  lower  class,  and  then  the  students  of  the  same 
class  shall  debate  with  one  another. 

49.  From  the  beginning  of  logic  on,  the  students  shall 
be   so  instructed   that   in  their   disputations   they   may   be 
ashamed  of  nothing  more  than  of  a  departure  from  syllogis- 
tic form.     The  teacher  shall  insist  on  nothing  more  than 
on  an  observance  of  the  laws  of  disputation  and  the  proper 
alternation  between  attack  and  defense.     Therefore,  let  the 
defendant  first  repeat  the  whole  argumentation  without  any 
reply  to  the  separate  propositions ;  then  let  him  repeat  again 
the  propositions,  and  add  to  each  one  "  I  grant  it,"  or  "  I 
deny  the  major  or  minor  premise  or  the  conclusion."     Let 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"       199 

him  also  sometimes  draw  distinctions,  but  not  urge  upon 
any  one  against  his  will  the  explanation  or  reasons  which 
one  is  accustomed  to  introduce. 

50.  Finally  he  [the  professor  of  physics]  shall  not  for- 
get that  he  is  to  pursue  the  secular  sciences  in  a  religious 
manner,  in  order  that  "  the  invisible  things  of  God  may  be 
made  known  through  those  things  which  are  made  "  [Rom. 
1 :2o]  ;  therefore  let  him  seek,  as  occasion  presents  itself,  to 
confirm  the  truths  of  faith  also  through  physical  science, 
yet   without   going  aside   to   theological,   metaphysical,   or 
Scriptural  exposition. 

51.  There  shall  be  three  examiners  [in  the  lower  gym- 
nasium studies]  :  one  of  them  must  ordinarily  be  the  Pre- 
fect ;  the  other  two  must  be  learned  in  the  humanities,  and 
be  appointed  by  the  rector  together  with  the  Prefect.     A 
majority  of  the  three  shall  decide.     But  where  the  number 
of  students  is  large,  two  or  more  such  triumvirates  may  be 
appointed. 

52.  The  order  of  the  examination  is  as  follows :  first 
each  student,  when  he  is  called  on,  shall  read  a  part  of  his 
composition ;  then  let  him  correct  his  mistakes  and  explain 
them,  with  a  citation  of  the  rule  which  he  has  failed  to  ob- 
serve.    Afterwards  the  grammar  students  shall  immediately 
translate  into  Latin  an  exercise  assigned  them  in  the  ver- 
nacular; all  shall  be  interrogated  about  the  rules  and  sub- 
jects of  their  class.     Finally,  when  it  is  necessary,  a  brief 
interpretation  of  any  passage  from  those  books,  which  have 
been  read  in  class,  may  be  required  of  them. 

53.  When  three  students  have  been  examined,  and  while 
the  recollection  of  the  examiners  is  still  clear,  the  vote  shall 
be  taken,  in  which  the  composition,  the  notes  of  the  teacher, 
and  the  oral  examination  shall  all  be  considered. 

54.  The  list  of  promoted  students  shall  be  announced 
publicly  either  in  the  separate  classes  or  in  the  assembly 


200  THE  JESUITS 

room.  When  any  students  have  greatly  distinguished  them- 
selves, they  shall  first  receive  honorable  mention ;  with  the 
rest  the  order  of  the  alphabet  or  of  studies  must  be  ob- 
served. 

55.  Let  him  [the  Prefect]  have  great  care  that  the  stu- 
dents give  public  proof  of  their  progress  and  of  the  good 
standing  of  our  schools  with  due  solemnity ;  to  this  end  let 
him  timely  admonish  the  teachers  and  personally  examine 
those  students  who  are  to  appear  publicly  before  they  are 
allowed  to  do  so. 

56.  In  every  class,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  place, 
let  him  appoint  a  student  as  public  censor,  or  if  this  name  is 
displeasing,   an   upper  decurion   or   praetor;   who,   that  he 
may  be  in  honor  among  his  fellow-students,  must  be  dis- 
tinguished through  some  privilege,  and  have  the  right,  with 
the  approval  of  the  teacher,  of  petitioning  in  behalf  of  his 
fellow-students   for  the  remission   of  lighter  punishments. 
Let  him  observe  whether  any  of  his  fellow-pupils  before  the 
signal  for  school  wanders  around  in  the  yard  or  enters  an- 
other school,  or  leaves  his  own  school  or  place.     He  must 
also  inform  the  Prefect  every  day,  who  has  been  absent  from 
school,  whether  any  one  not  a  student  has  entered  the  class- 
room, and  finally  whether  in  the  presence  or  absence  of  the 
teacher  any  fault  has  been  committed  in  the  school. 

57.  On  account  of  those  who  are  lacking  in  diligence 
and  good  morals,  and  for  whom  kind  words  and  admonitions 
are  not  alone  sufficient,  a  corrector  must  be  appointed  who 
does  not  belong  to  the  Society.     Where  such  a  person  can 
not  be  had,  another  way  should  be  devised  (either  through 
one  of  the  students  themselves  or  otherwise),  by  which  the 
guilty  may  receive  proper  chastisement. 

58.  When  neither  words  nor  the  office  of  the  corrector 
is  sufficient,  when  no  improvement  in  the  student  is  to  be 
hoped   for,   and  moral   contamination   for  others   is  to  be 


SELECTION  FROM  THE  "RATIO  STUDIORUM"       201 

feared,  it  is  better  to  remove  him  from  the  school  than  to 
keep  him  there,  where  he  makes  no  progress  himself  and 
injures  others.  But  that  all  may  be  done,  as  is  fitting,  to 
the  glory  and  service  of  God,  the  decision  of  the  matter 
must  be  left  to  the  rector. 

59.  Christian  doctrine  must  be  learned  by  heart  in  all 
the  classes ;  and  in  the  three  grammar  classes,  and  if  neces- 
sary, in  the  other  classes,  it  must  be  repeated  Fridays  or 
Saturdays.     According  to   the   grade   of  each   class   more 
ample  explanations  shall  be  given  and  required. 

60.  On  Friday  or  Saturday  let  him  [the  Professor  of  the 
lower  classes]  deliver  for  half  an  hour  a  pious  exhortation 
or  explanation  of  the  catechism ;  but  especially  let  him  ex- 
hort to  daily  prayer  to  God,  to  a  daily  reciting  of  the  rosary 
or  office  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  to  an  examination  of  the 
conscience  every  evening,  to  a  frequent  and  worthy  recep- 
tion of  the  sacraments  of  penance  and  the  altar,  to  an  avoid- 
ance of  evil  habits,  to  a  detestation  of  vice,  and  finally  to  a 
practice  of  all  the  virtues  becoming  a  Christian. 

61.  Especial  care  must  be  exercised  that  the  students 
acquire  the  habit  of  speaking  Latin.     Therefore  the  teacher, 
at  least   from  the  upper   grammar  grade,   must   speak   in 
Latin,  and  require  also  that  the  students  speak  Latin,  es- 
pecially in  the  explanation  of  rules,  the  correction  of  Latin 
exercises,  in  disputations,  and  in  their  daily  intercourse.     In 
the  translation  of  authors. he  must  himself  have  great  re- 
gard for  the  purity  and  correct  pronunciation  of  the  mother 
tongue,  and  strictly  require  the  same  from  the  students. 

62.  The  class-match  (concertatio)  is  usually  so  arranged 
that  either  the  teacher  questions  and  the  contestants  (seniuli) 
correct  the  answers,  or  the  contestants  question  one  another. 
This  exercise  is  to  be  highly  esteemed  and,  as  often  as  pos- 
sible, engaged  in,  in  order  that  a  proper  emulation  (honesta 
semulatio),  which  is  a  great  incentive  to  study,  may  be  cul- 


202  THE  JESUITS 

tivated.  This  contest  may  take  place  between  two  students 
only,  or  between  several  on  each  side,  especially  from  the 
officers  of  the  class.  Let  a  private  student  attack  another, 
and  an  officer  another;  sometimes  also  let  a  private  attack 
an  officer,  and  in  case  of  victory  let  him  take  the  officer's 
post  of  honor,  or  any  other  prize  or  mark  of  victory  that  the 
dignity  of  the  school  and  the  usage  of  the  locality  may  de- 
mand. 


XIV.     MONTAIGNE. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

The  distinguished  French  essayist  Montaigne  was  born 
in  Perigord  the  last  day  of  February,  1533.  His  father 
was  a  man  of  prominence,  who  filled,  among  other  offices, 
that  of  mayor  of  Bordeaux  for  several  years.  His  son 
speaks  of  him,  in  one  of  his  essays,  as  "  a  man  of  austere 
probity,"  who  had  "  a  particular  regard  for  honor." 

The  young  Montaigne  received  a  careful  though  some- 
what unconventional  education.  He  was  awakened  in  the 
morning  by  the  sound  of  agreeable  music,  and  by  means  of 
a  German  tutor,  who  used  only  Latin  in  conversing'with  his 
pupil,  he  learned  that  language  without  the  use  of  the  rod. 
He  attended  the  College  of  Guienne  at  Bordeaux,  where  at 
the  remarkably  early  age  of  thirteen  he  completed  the  course 
of  instruction.  He  afterwards  studied  law,  and  in  1554 
received  the  appointment  of  councillor  in  the  parliament  of 
Bordeaux.  He  maintained  intimate  relations  with  the 
French  court,  and  received  from  Henry  II.  the  title  of  Gen- 
tleman in  Ordinary  to  the  King. 

But  a  life  of  courtly  service  and  martial  activity  did  not 
suit  the  tastes  of  Montaigne,  and  accordingly,  on  reaching 
the  age  of  thirty-eight,  he  resolved  to  dedicate  the  remainder 
of  his  life  to  study  and  contemplation.  In  connection  with 
miscellaneous  reading  he  acquired  the  habit  of  setting  down 
the  choice  thoughts  that  occurred  to  him.  At  length  these 
thoughts,  revised  and  re-arranged,  grew  into  the  book  of 
essays,  which  first  appeared  at  Bordeaux  in  1580. 

203 


204  MONTAIGNE 

During  his  absence  in  Italy  Montaigne  was  elected  mayor 
of  Bordeaux,  an  office  which  he  accepted  from  a  sense  of 
civic  duty  and  which  he  filled  with  eminent  ability.  But 
along  with  his  municipal  duties  he  continued  to  prosecute 
his  literary  studies  and  to  make  from  time  to  time  important 
additions  to  his  essays.  New  editions  appeared  at  intervals 
until  his  death  in  1592. 

In  his  Essays,  which  have  given  him  an  honorable  place 
in  French  literature,  he  has  repeatedly  touched  upon  educa- 
tion. He  generally  displays  sound  judgment  and  fine 
independence.  He  drew  freely,  as  he  confesses,  from  the  an- 
cients, particularly  from  Plutarch  and  Seneca.  He  enter- 
tained liberal  views  of  education,  and  more  than  any  one 
else  led  the  reaction  against  the  harsh  discipline  and  narrow 
course  of  study  prevalent  in  his  day.  The  following  selec- 
tion is  his  essay,  "  Of  the  Education  of  Children,"  the  es- 
sential parts  of  which  are  given  entire.  As  will  be  seen, 
the  essay  is  in  the  form  of  a  letter  addressed  to  Montaigne's 
friend,  the  Countess  of  Gurson,  and  it  embodies  the  sub- 
stance of  all  that. he  has  elsewhere  written. 


SELECTION    FROM    MONTAIGNE. 

OF  THE  EDUCATION   OF  CHILDREN. 

To  Madame  Diane  de  Foix,  Countess  de  Gurson: 

For  a  boy  of  quality  then,  who  pretends  to  letters  not 
upon  the  account  of  profit  (for  so  mean  an  object  as  that  is 
unworthy  of  the  grace  and  favor  of  the  Muses,  and  more- 
over, in  it  a  man  directs  his  service  to  and  depends  upon 
others),  nor  so  much  for  outward  ornament,  as  for  his  own 
proper  and  peculiar  use,  and  to  furnish  and  enrich  himself 
within,  having  rather  a  desire  to  come  out  an  accomplished 
cavalier  than  a  mere  scholar  or  learned  man ;  for  such  a  one, 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  205 

I  say,  I  would,  also,  have  his  friends  solicitous  to  find  him 
out  a  tutor,  who  has  rather  a  well-made  than  a  well-filled 
head ;  seeking,  indeed,  both  the  one  and  the  other,  but  rather 
of  the  two  to  prefer  manners  and  judgment  to  mere  learn- 
ing, and  that  this  man  should  exercise  his  charge  after  a 
new  method. 

Tis  the  custom  of  pedagogues  to  be  eternally  thundering 
in  their  pupil's  ears,  as  they  were  pouring  into  a  funnel, 
while  the  business  of  the  pupil  is  only  to  repeat  what  the 
others  have  said :  now  I  would  have  a  tutor  to  correct  this 
error,  and,  that  at  the  very  first,  he  should,  according  to  the 
capacity  he  has  to  deal  with,  put  it  to  the  test,  permitting 
his  pupil  himself  to  taste  things,  and  of  himself  to  discern 
and  choose  them,  sometimes  opening  the  way  to  him,  and 
sometimes  leaving  him  to  open  it  for  himself;  that  is,  I 
would  not  have  him  alone  to  invent  and  speak,  but  that  he 
should  also  hear  his  pupil  speak  in  turn.  Socrates,  and 
since  him  Arcesilaus,  made  first  their  scholars  speak,  and 
then  they  spoke  to  them.1  "  Obest  plerumque  Us,  qui  dis- 
cere  volunt,  auctoritas  eorum,  qui  docent."2  It  is  good 
to  make  him,  like  a  young  horse,  trot  before  him  that  he 
may  judge  of  his  going  and  how  much  he  is  to  abate  of  his 
own  speed,  to  accommodate  himself  to  the  vigor  and  capa- 
city of  the  other.  For  want  of  which  due  proportion  we 
spoil  all;  which  also  to  know  how  to  adjust,  and  to  keep 
within  an  exact  and  due  measure,  is  one  of  the  hardest 
things  I  know,  and  'tis  the  effect  of  a  high  and  well-tem- 
pered soul  to  know  how  to  condescend  to  such  puerile 
motions  and  to  govern  and  direct  them.  I  walk  firmer  and 
more  secure  up  hill  than  down. 

Such  as,  according  to  our  common  way  of  teaching,  un- 

1  Diogenes   Laertius,   iv.    36. 

2 "  The    authority   of    those    who    teach,    is    very    often    an    impediment   to 

those  who  desire  to  learn." —  CICERO,  De  Natura  Dear.,  i.  5. 


206  MONTAIGNE 

dertake,  with  one  and  the  same  lesson,  and  the  same  measure 
of  direction,  to  instruct  several  boys  of  differing  and  un- 
equal capacities,  are  infinitely  mistaken ;  and  'tis  no  wonder, 
if  in  a  whole  multitude  of  scholars,  there  are  not  found 
above  two  or  three  who  bring  away  any  good  account  of 
their  time  and  discipline.  Let  the  master  not  only  ex- 
amine him  about  the  grammatical  construction  of  the  bare 
words  of  his  lesson,  but  about  the  sense  and  substance  of 
them,  and  let  him  judge  of  the  profit  he  has  made,  not  by 
the  testimony  of  his  memory,  but  by  that  of  his  life.  Let 
him  make  him  put  what  he  has  learned  into  a  hundred 
several  forms,  and  accommodate  it  to  so  many  several  sub- 
jects, to  see  if  he  yet  rightly  comprehends  it,  and  has  made 
it  his  own,  taking  instruction  of  his  progress  by  the  peda- 
gogic institutions  of  Plato.  'Tis  a  sign  of  crudity  and 
indigestion  to  disgorge  what  we  eat  in  the  same  condition 
it  was  swallowed;  the  stomach  has  not  performed  its  office 
unless  it  have  altered  the  form  and  condition  of  what  was 
committed  to  it  to  concoct.  Our  minds  work  only  upon 
trust,  when  bound  and  compelled  to  follow  the  appetite  of 
another's  fancy,  enslaved  and  captivated  under  the  author- 
ity of  another's  instruction;  we  have  been  so  subjected  to 
the  trammel,  that  we  have  no  free,  nor  natural  pace  of  our 
own;  our  own  vigor  and  liberty  are  extinct  and  gone: 
"  Nunquam  tutelce  sues  Hunt."  x 

Let  him  make  him  examine  and  thoroughly  sift  every- 
thing he  reads,  and  lodge  nothing  in  his  fancy  upon  simple 
authority  and  upon  trust.  Aristotle's  principles  will  then 
be  no  mQre  principles  to  him,  than  those  of  Epicurus  and 
the  Stoics:  let  this  diversity  of  opinions  be  propounded  to, 
and  laid  before  him;  he  will  himself  choose,  if  he  be  able; 
if  not,  he  will  remain  in  doubt. 

1 "  They  are  ever  in  wardship."-H5ENECA,  Ep.,  33. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  207 

"  Che,  non  men  che  saper,  dubbiar  m'  aggrata,"  1 

for,  if  he  embrace  the  opinions  of  Xenophon  and  Plato,  by 
his  own  reason,  they  will  no  more  be  theirs,  but  become  his 
own.  Who  follows  another,  follows  nothing,  finds  nothing, 
nay,  is  inquisitive  after  nothing.  "Non  sumus  sub  rege; 
sibi  quisque  se  vindicet."  2  Let  him  at  least,  know  that  he 
knows.  It  will  be  necessary  that  he  imbibe  their  knowl- 
edge, not  that  he  be  corrupted  with  their  precepts ;  and  no 
matter  if  he  forgot  where  he  had  his  learning,  provided  he 
know  how  to  apply  it  to  his  own  use.  Truth  and  reason  are 
common  to  everyone,  and  are  no  more  his  who  spake  them 
first,  than  his  who  speaks  them  after:  'tis  no  more  accord- 
ing to  Plato,  than  according  to  me,  since  both  he  and  I 
equally  see  and  understand  them.  Bees  cull  their  several 
sweets  from  this  flower  and  that  blossom,  here  and  there 
where  they  find  them,  but  themselves  afterward  make  the 
honey,  which  is  all  and  purely  their  own,  and  no  more 
thyme  and  marjoram:  so  the  several  fragments  he  borrows 
from  others,  he  will  transform  and  shuffle  together  to  com- 
pile a  work  that  shall  be  absolutely  his  own ;  that  is  to  say, 
his  judgment:  his  instruction,  labor  and  study,  tend  to 
nothing  else  but  to  form  that.  .  .  .  The  advantages  of 
our  study  are  to  become  better  and  more  wise.  "  'Tis,"  says 
Epicharmus,  "  the  understanding  that  sees  and  hears,  'tis  the 
understanding  that  improves  everything,  that  orders  every- 
thing, and  that  acts,  rules,  and  reigns:  all  other  faculties 
are  blind,  and  deaf,  and  without  soul."  And  certainly 
we  render  it  timorous  and  servile,  in  not  allowing 
it  the  liberty  and  privilege  to  do  anything  of  itself.  Who- 
ever asked  his  pupil  what  he  thought  of  grammar  or  rhetoric, 
and  of  such  and  such  a  sentence  of  Cicero?  Our  masters 


1  "  I  love   to   doubt,   as  well   to   know." — DANTE,   Inferno,   xi.   93. 

2  "  We  are  under  no  king;   let  each  look  to  himself." — SENECA,  Ep.,  33. 


208  MONTAIGNE 

stick  them,  full  feathered,  in  our  memories,  and  there  estab- 
lish them  like  oracles,  of  which  the  letters  and  syllables  are 
of  the  substance  of  the  thing.  To  know  by  rote,  is  no 
knowledge,  and  signifies  no  more  but  only  to  retain  what 
one  has  intrusted  to  our  memory.  That  which  a  man  rightly 
knows  and  understands,  he  is  the  free  disposer  of  at  his  own 
full  liberty,  without  any  regard  to  the  author  from  whence 
he  had  it  or  fumbling  over  the  leaves  of  his  book.  A  mere 
bookish  learning  is  a  poor,  paltry  learning;  it  may  serve 
for  ornament,  but  there  is  yet  no  foundation  for  any  super- 
structure to  be  built  upon  it,  according  to  the  opinion  of 
Plato,  who  says  that  constancy,  faith,  and  sincerity,  are  the 
true  philosophy,  and  the  other  sciences,  that  are  directed  to 
other  ends,  mere  adulterate  paint.  I  could  wish  that  Paluel 
or  Pompey,  those  two  noted  dancers  of  my  time,  could  have 
taught  us  to  cut  capers,  by  only  seeing  them  do  it,  without 
stirring  from  our  places,  as  these  men  pretend  to  inform 
the  understanding,  without  ever  setting  it  to  work;  or  that 
we  could  learn  to  ride,  handle  a  pike,  touch  a  lute,  or  sing, 
without  the  trouble  of  practice,  as  these  attempt  to  make 
us  judge  and  speak  well,  without  exercising  us  in  judging 
or  speaking.  Now  in  this  initiation  of  our  studies  and  in 
their  progress,  whatsoever  presents  itself  before  us  is  book 
sufficient ;  a  roguish  trick  of  a  page,  a  sottish  mistake  of  a 
servant,  a  jest  at  the  table,  are  so  many  new  subjects. 

And  for  this  reason,  conversation  with  men  is  of  very 
great  use  and  travel  into  foreign  countries;  not  to  bring 
back  (as  most  of  our  young  monsieurs  do)  an  account  only 
of  how  many  paces  Santa  Rotonda  1  is  in  circuit ;  or  of  the 
richness  of  Signora  Livia's  petticoats;  or,  as  some  others, 
how  much  Nero's  face,  in  a  statue  in  such  an  old  ruin,  is 
longer  and  broader  than  that  made  for  him  on  some  medal; 
but  to  be  able  chiefly  to  give  an  account  of  the  humors, 

1  The  Pantheon  of  Agrippa. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  209 

manners,  customs  and  laws  of  those  nations  where  he  has 
been,  and  that  we  may  whet  and  sharpen  our  wits  by  rub- 
bing them  against  those  of  others.  I  would  that  a  boy 
should  be  sent  abroad  very  young,  and  first,  so  as  to  kill 
two  birds  with  one  stone,  into  those  neighboring  nations 
whose  language  is  most  differing  from  our'  own,  and  to 
which,  if  it  be  not  formed  betimes,  the  tongue  will  grow 
too  stiff  to  bend. 

And  also  'tis  the  general  opinion  of  all,  that  a  child 
should  not  be  brought  up  in  his  mother's  lap.  Mothers 
are  too  tender,  and  their  natural  affection  is  apt  to  make  the 
most  discreet  of  them  all  so  overfond,  that  they  can  neither 
find  in  their  hearts  to  give  them  due  correction  for  the 
faults  they  commit,  nor  suffer  them  to  be  inured  to  hard- 
ships and  hazards,  as  they  ought  to  be.  They  will  not 
endure  to  see  them  return  all  dust  and  sweat  from  their 
exercise,  to  drink  cold  drink  when  they  are  hot,  nor  see  them 
mount  an  unruly  horse,  nor  take  a  foil  in  hand  against  a 
rude  fencer,  or  so  much  as  to  discharge  a  carbine.  And 
yet  there  is  no  remedy;  whoever  will  breed  a  boy  to  be 
good  for  anything  when  he  comes  to  be  a  man,  must  by  no 
means  spare  him  when  young,  and  must  very  often  trans- 
gress the  rules  of  physic : 

"  Vitamque  sub  dio  et  trepidis  agat 
In  rebus."  x 

It  is  not  enough  to  fortify  his  soui:  you  are  also  to  make 
his  sinews  strong;  for  the  soul  will  be  oppressed  if  not 
assisted  by  the  members,  and  would  have  too  hard  a  task  to 
discharge  two  offices  alone.  .  .  . 

And  yet,  even  in  this  conversing  with  men  I  spoke  of 
but  now,  I  have  observed  this  vice,  that  instead  of  gather- 

1  "  Let  him  live  in  the  open  air,  and  ever  in  movement  about  something." 
—  HORACE,   Od.,  ii.   3,   5. 
PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 14 


2io  MONTAIGNE 

ing  observations  from  others,  we  make  it  our  whole  busi- 
ness to  lay  ourselves  upon  them,  and  are  more  concerned 
how  to  expose  and  set  out  our  own  commodities,  than  how 
to  increase  our  stock  by  acquiring  new.  Silence,  therefore, 
and  modesty  are  very  advantageous  qualities  in  conversa- 
tion. One  should,  therefore,  train  up  this  boy  to  be  spar- 
ing and  a  husband  of  his  knowledge  when  he  has  acquired 
it;  and  to  forbear  taking  exceptions  at  or  reproving  every 
idle  saying  or  ridiculous  story  that  is  said  or  told  in  his 
presence;  for  it  is  a  very  unbecoming  rudeness  to  carp  at 
everything  that  is  not  agreeable  to  our  own  palate.  Let 
him  be  satisfied  with  correcting  himself,  and  not  seem  to 
condemn  everything  in  another  he  would  not  do  himself, 
nor  dispute  it  as  against  common  customs.  "Licet  sapere 
sine  pompa,  sine  invidia."  *  Let  him  avoid  these  vain  and 
uncivil  images  of  authority,  this  childish  ambition  of  covet- 
ing to  appear  better  bred  and  more  accomplished,  than  he 
really  will,  by  such  carriage,  discover  himself  to  be.  And, 
as  if  opportunities  of  interrupting  and  reprehending  were 
not  to  be  omitted,  to  desire  thence  to  derive  the  reputation 
of  something  more  than  ordinary.  For  as  it  becomes  none 
but  great  poets  to  make  use  of  the  poetical  license,  so  it  is 
intolerable  for  any  but  men  of  great  and  illustrious  souls  to 
assume  privilege  above  the  authority  of  custom;  "si  quid 
Socrates  aut  Aristippus  contra  morem  et  consuetudinem 
fecerunt,  idem  sibi  ne  arbitretur  licere:  magnis  enim  illi 
et  divinis  bonis  hanc  licentiam  assequebantur."  2  Let  him 
be  instructed  not  to  engage  in  discourse  or  dispute  but 
with  a  champion  worthy  of  him,  and,  even  then,  not  to 

1 "  Let  him  be  wise  without  ostentation,  without  envy." —  SENECA, 
Ep.,  103. 

z  "  If  Socrates  and  Aristippus  have  transgressed  the  rules  of  good  conduct 
or  custom,  let  him  not  imagine  that  he  is  licensed  to  do  the  same;  for  it  was 
by  great  and  sovereign  virtues  that  they  obtained  this  privilege."— CICERO, 
De  Offic.,  i.  4i. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  211 

make  use  of  all  the  little  subtleties  that  may  seem  pat  for 
his  purpose,  but  only  such  arguments  as  may  best  serve 
him.  Let  him  be  taught  to  be  curious  in  the  election  and 
choice  of  his  reasons,  to  abominate  impertinence,  and,  con- 
sequently, to  affect  brevity;  but,  above  all,  let  him  be  les- 
soned to  acquiescence  and  submit  to  truth  so  soon  as  ever  he 
shall  discover  it,  whether  in  his  opponent's  argument,  or 
upon  better  consideration  of  his  own;  for  he  shall  never  be 
preferred  to  the  chair  for  a  mere  clatter  of  words  and 
syllogisms,  and  is  no  further  engaged  to  any  argument 
whatever,  than  as  he  shall  in  his  own  judgment  approve 
it :  nor  yet  is  arguing  a  trade,  where  the  liberty  of  recanta- 
tion and  getting  off  upon  better  thoughts,  are  to  be  sold 
for  ready  money :  "  Neque,  ut  omnia,  qua  prcescripta  et 
imperata  sint,  defendat,  necessitate  ulla  cogitur"' x 
***** 

Let  his  conscience  and  virtue  be  eminently  manifest  in 
his  speaking,  and  have  only  reason  for  their  guide.  Make 
him  understand,  that  to  acknowledge  the  error  he  shall  dis- 
cover in  his  own  argument,  though  only  found  out  by  him- 
self, is  an  effect  of  judgment  and  sincerity,  which  are  the 
principal  things  he  is  to  seek  after;  that  obstinacy  and 
contention  are  common  qualities,  most  appearing  in  mean 
souls ;  that  to  revise  and  correct  himself,  to  forsake  an  un- 
just argument  in  the  height  and  heat  of  dispute,  are  rare, 
great,  and  philosophical  qualities.  Let  him  be  advised; 
being  in  company,  to  have  his  eye  and  ear  in  every  corner, 
for  I  find  that  the  places  of  greatest  honor  are  commonly 
seized  upon  by  men  that  have  least  in  them,  and  that  the 
greatest  fortunes  are  seldom  accompanied  with  the  ablest 
parts.  I  have  been  present  when,  while  they  at  the  upper 
end  of  the  chamber  have  only  been  commending  the  beauty 

1 "  Neither    is    there    any    necessity    upon    him,    that    he    should    defend   all 
tilings  that  are  recommended  to  and  enjoined  him." —  CICERO,  Acad.,  ii.  3. 


212  MONTAIGNE 

of  the  arras,  or  the  flavor  of  the  wine,  many  things  that 
have  been  very  finely  said  at  the  lower  end  of  the  table 
have  been  lost  or  thrown  away.  Let  him  examine  every 
man's  talent;  a  peasant,  a  bricklayer,  a  passenger:  one 
may  learn  something  from  every  one  of  these  in  their 
several  capacities,  and  something  will  be  picked  out  of 
their  discourse  whereof  some  use  may  be  made  at  one  time 
or  another;  nay,  even  the  folly  and  impertinence  of  others 
will  contribute  to  his  instruction.  By  observing  the  graces 
and  manners  of  all  he  sees,  he  will  create  to  himself  an 
emulation  of  the  good,  and  a  contempt  of  the  bad. 

Let  an  honest  curiosity  be  suggested  to  his  fancy  of  being 
inquisitive  after  everything;  whatever  there  is  singular  and 
rare  near  the  place  where  he  is,  let  him  go  and  see  it ;  a  fine 
house,  a  noble  fountain,  an  eminent  man,  the  place  where 
a  battle  has  been  anciently  fought,  the  passages  of  Caesar 
and  Charlemagne: 

"  Quse  tellus  sit  lenta  gelu,  quae  putris  ab  sestu, 
Ventus  in  Italiam  quis  bene  vela  ferat."  1 

Let  him  inquire  into  the  manners,  revenues  and  alliances 
of  princes,  things  in  themselves  very  pleasant  to  learn,  and 
very  useful  to  know. 

In  this  conversing  with  men,  I  mean  also  and  principally, 
those  who  only  live  in  the  records  of  history;  he  shall,  by 
reading  those  books,  converse  with  the  great  and  heroic 
souls  of  the  best  ages.  'Tis  an  idle  and  vain  study  to  those 
who  make  it  by  so  doing  it  after  a  negligent  manner,  but  to 
those  who  do  it  with  care  and  observation,  'tis  a  study  of 
inestimable  fruit  and  value;  and  the  only  study,  as  Plato 
reports,  that  the  Lacedaemonians  reserved  to  themselves.2 

1 "  What  country  is  bound  in  frost,  what  land  is  friable  with  heat,   what 
wind  serves   fairest   for  Italy." —  PROPERTIUS,   iv.    3,   39. 
*  Hippias  Major. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  213 

What  profit  shall  he  not  reap  as  to  the  business  of  men,  by 
reading  the  lives  of  Plutarch  ?  But,  withal,  let  my  governor 
remember  to  what  end  his  instructions  are  principally  di- 
rected, and  that  he  do  not  so  much  imprint  in  his  pupil's 
memory  the  date  of  the  ruin  of  Carthage,  as  the  manners  of 
Hannibal  and  Scipio;  nor  so  much  where  Marcellus  died, 
as  why  it  was  unworthy  of  his  duty  that  he  died  there.  Let 
him  not  teach  him  so  much  the  narrative  parts  of  history 
as  to  judge  them ;  the  reading  of  them,  in  my  opinion,  is  a 
thing  that  of  all  others  we  apply  ourselves  unto  with  the 
most  differing  measure.  I  have  read  a  hundred  things  in 
Livy  that  another  has  not,  or  not  taken  notice  of  at  least ; 
and  Plutarch  has  read  a  hundred  more  there  than  ever  I 
could  find,  or  than,  peradventure,  that  author  ever  wrote ; 
to  some  it  is  merely  a  grammar  study,  to  others  the  very 
anatomy  of  philosophy,  by  which  the  most  abstruse  parts  of 
our  human  nature  penetrate. 

This  great  world  which  some  do  yet  multiply  as  several 
species  under  one  genus,  is  the  mirror  wherein  we  are  to 
behold  ourselves,  to  be  able  to  know  ourselves  as  we  ought 
to  do  in  the  true  bias.  In  short,  I  would  have  this  to  be 
the  book  my  young  gentleman  should  study  with  the  most 
attention.  So  many  humors,  so  many  sects,  so  many 
judgments,  opinions,  laws  and  customs,  teach  us  to  judge 
aright  of  our  own,  and  inform  our  understanding  to  dis- 
cover its  imperfection  and  natural  infirmity,  which  is  no 
trivial  speculation.  So  many  mutations  of  states  and  king- 
doms, and  so  many  turns  and  revolutions  of  public  for- 
tune, will  made  us  wise  enough  to  make  no  great  wonder 
of  our  own.  So  many  great  names,  so  many  famous  vic- 
tories and  conquests  drowned  and  swallowed  in  oblivion, 
render  our  hopes  ridiculous  of  eternizing  our  names  by  the 
taking  of  half-a-score  of  light  horse,  or  a  henroost,  which 
only  derives  its  memory  from  its  ruin.  The  pride  and  ar- 


2:4 

rogance  of  so  many  foreign  pomps  and  ceremonies,  the 
tumorous  majesty  of  so  many  courts  and  grandeurs, 
accustom  and  fortify  our  sight  without  astonishment  or 
winking  to  behold  the  lustre  of  our  own ;  so  many  millions 
of  men,  buried  before  us,  encourage  us  not  to  fear  to  go 
seek  such  good  company  in  the  other  world:  and  so  of  all 
the  rest.  Pythagoras  was  wont  to  say,1  that  our  life  re- 
sembles the  great  and  populous  assembly  of  the  Olympic 
games,  wherein  some  exercise  the  body,  that  they  may 
carry  away  the  glory  of  the  prize;  others  bring  merchan- 
dise to  sell  for  profit;  there  are,  also,  some  (and  those  none 
of  the  worst  sort)  who  pursue  no  other  advantage  than 
only  to  look  on,  and  consider  how  and  why  everything  is 
done,  and  to  be  spectators  of  the  lives  of  other  men,  thereby 
the  better  to  judge  of  and  regulate  their  own. 

To  examples  may  fitly  be  applied  all  the  profitable  dis- 
courses of  philosophy,  to  which  all  human  actions,  as  to 
their  best  rule,  ought  to  be  especially  directed:  a  scholar 
shall  be  taught  to  know  — 

"  Quid  fas  optare,  quid  asper 
Utjle  nummus  habet ;  patrise  carisque  propinquis 
Quantum  elargiri  deceat ;  quem  te  Deus  esse 
Jussit,  et  humana  qua  parte  locatus  es  in  re ; 
Quid  sumus,  aut  quidnam  victuri   gignimur,"2 

what  it  is  to  know,  and  what  to  be  ignorant;  what  ought 
to  be  the  end  and  design  of  study ;  what  valor,  temperance 
and  justice  are;  the  difference  between  ambition  and  avarice, 
servitude  and  subjection,  license  and  liberty;  by  what  token 

1  Cicero,   Tusc.   Quaes.,  v.   3. 

2"  Learn  what  it  is  right  to  wish;  what  is  the  true  use  of  coined  money; 
how  much  it  becomes  us  to  give  in  liberality  to  our  country  and  our  dear 
relations;  whom  and  what  the  Deity  commanded  thee  to  be;  and  in  what  part 
of  the  human  system  thou  art  placed;  what  we  are  and  to  what  purpose 
engendered." —  PERSIUS,  iii.  69. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  215 

a  man  may  know  true  and  solid  contentment ;  how  far  death, 
affliction,  and  disgrace  are  to  be  apprehended: 

"  Et  quo  quemque  modo  f ugiatque  feratque  laborem ;  "  * 

by  what  secret  springs  we  move,  and  the  reason  of  our 
various  agitations  and  irresolutions ;  for,  methinks,  the  first 
doctrine  with  which  one  should  season  his  understanding, 
ought  to  be  that  which  regulates  his  manners  and  his  sense ; 
that  teaches  him  to  know  himself,  and  how  both  well  to 
die  and  well  to  live.  Among  the  liberal  sciences,  let  us  be- 
gin with  that  which  makes  us  free ;  not  that  they  do  not  all 
serve  in  some  measure  to  the  instruction  and  use  of  life, 
as  all  other  things  in  some  sort  also  do ;  but  let  us  make 
choice  of  that  which  directly  and  professedly  serves  to  that 
end.  If  we  are  once  able  to  restrain  the  offices  of  human 
life  within  their  just  and  natural  limits,  we  shall  find  that 
most  of  the  sciences  in  use  are  of  no  great  use  to  us,  and 
even  in  those  that  are,  that  there  are  many  very  unnecessary 
cavities  and  dilatations  which  we  had  better  let  alone,  and 
follow  Socrates'  direction,  limit  the  course  of  our  studies 
to  those  things  only  where  is  a  true  and  real  utility. 

After  having  taught  him  what  will  make  him  more  wise 
and  good,  you  may  then  entertain  him  with  the  elements 
of  logic,  physics,  geometry,  rhetoric,  and  the  science  which 
he  shall  then  himself  most  incline  to,  his  judgment  being 
beforehand  formed  and  fit  to  choose,  he  will  quickly  make 
his  own.  The  way  of  instructing  him  ought  to  be  some- 
times by  discourse,  and  sometimes  by  reading,  sometimes 
his  governor  shall  put  the  author  himself,  which  he  shall 
think  most  proper  for  him,  into  his  hands,  and  sometimes 
only  the  marrow  and  substance  of  it;  and  if  himself  be 

1 "  And  how  you   may  shun  or  sustain    every    hardship." — VIRGIL,    JEneid, 
iii.  459- 


216  MONTAIGNE 

not  conversant  enough  in  books  to  turn  to  all  the  fine  dis- 
courses the  books  contain  for  his  purpose,  there  may  some 
man  of  learning  be  joined  to  him,  that  upon  every  occasion 
shall  supply  him  with  what  he  stands  in  need  of,  to  furnish 
it  to  his  pupil.  And  who  can  doubt,  but  that  this  way  of 
teaching  is  much  more  easy  and  natural  than  that  of  Gaza, 
in  which  the  precepts  are  so  intricate,  and  so  harsh,  and  the 
words  so  vain,  lean,  and  insignificant,  that  there  is  no  hold 
to  be  taken  of  them,  nothing  that  quickens  and  elevates  the 
wit  and  fancy,  whereas  here  the  mind  has  what  to  feed 
upon  and  to  digest  This  fruit,  therefore,  is  not  only  with- 
out comparison,  much  more  fair  and  beautiful ;  but  will  also 
be  much  more  early  ripe. 

The  soul  that  lodges  philosophy,  ought  to  be  of  such  a 
constitution  of  health,  as  to  render  the  body  in  like  manner 
healthful  too;  she  ought  to  make  her  tranquillity  and  satis- 
faction shine  so  as  to  appear  without,  and  her  contentment 
ought  to  fashion  the  outward  behavior  to  her  own  mold, 
and  consequently  to  fortify  it  with  a  graceful  confidence, 
an  active  and  joyous  carriage,  and  a  serene  and  contented 
countenance.  The  most  manifest  sign  of  wisdom  is  a  con- 
tinual cheerfulness;  her  state  is  like  that  of  things  in  the 
regions  above  the  moon,  always  clear  and  serene.  'Tis 
Baroco  and  Baralipton1  that  render  their  disciples  so  dirty 
and  ill-favored,  and  not  she;  they  do  not  so  much  as  know 
her  but  by  hearsay.  What!  It  is  she  that  calms  and 
appeases  the  storms  and  tempests  of  the  soul,  and  who 
teaches  famine  and  fevers  to  laugh  and  sing;  and  that,  not 
by  certain  imaginary  epicycles,  but  by  natural  and  manifest 
reasons.  She  has  virtue  for  her  end;  which  is  not,  as  the 
schoolmen  say,  situate  upon  the  summit  of  a  perpendicular, 
rugged,  inaccessible  precipice:  such  as  have  approached 

1  Two  terms  of  the  ancient  scholastic  logic. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  217 

her  find  her,  quite  on  the  contrary,  to  be  seated  in  a  fair, 
fruitful,  and  flourishing  plain,  from  whence  she  easily  dis- 
covers all  things  below ;  to  which  place  any  one  may,  how- 
ever, arrive,  if  he  know  but  the  way,  through  shady,  green, 
and  sweetly  flourishing  avenues,  by  a  pleasant,  easy,  and 
smooth  descent,  like  that  of  the  celestial  vault.  Tis  for 
not  having  frequented  this  supreme,  this  beautiful,  tri- 
umphant, and  amiable,  this  equally  delicious  and  courageous 
virtue,  this  so  professed  and  implacable  enemy  to  anxiety, 
sorrow,  fear,  and  constraint,  who,  having  nature  for  her 
guide,  has  fortune  and  pleasure  for  her  companions,  that 
they  have  gone,  according  to  their  own  weak  imaginations 
and  created  this  ridiculous,  this  sorrowful,  querulous, 
despiteful,  threatening,  terrible  image  of  it  to  themselves 
and  others,  and  placed  it  upon  a  rock  apart,  among  thorns 
and  brambles,  and  made  of  it  a  hobgoblin  to  affright  people. 
Such  a  tutor  will  make  a  pupil  digest  this  new  lesson, 
that  the  height  and  value  of  true  virtue  consist  in  the 
facility,  utility,  and  pleasure  of  its  exercise ;  so  far  from 
difficulty,  that  boys,  as  well  as  men,  and  the  innocent  as 
well  as  the  subtle,  may  make  it  their  own:  it  is  by  order, 
and  not  by  force,  that  it  is  to  be  acquired.  Socrates,  her 
first  minion,  is  so  averse  to  all  manner  of  violence,  as  totally 
to  throw  it  aside,  to  slip  into  the  more  natural  facility  of 
her  own  progress:  'tis  the  nursing  mother  of  all  human 
pleasures,  who  in  rendering  them  just,  renders  them  also 
pure  and  permanent ;  in  moderating  them,  keeps  them  in 
breath  and  appetite;  in  interdicting  those  which  she  herself 
refuses,  whets  our  desire  to  those  that  she  allows ;  and,  like 
a  kind  and  liberal  mother,  abundantly  allows  all  that  nature 
requires,  even  to  satiety,  if  not  to  lassitude :  unless  we  mean 
to'  say,  that  the  regimen  which  stops  the  toper  before  he 
has  drunk  himself  drunk,  the  glutton  before  he  has  eaten 
to  a  surfeit,  .  .  .  is  an  enemy  to  pleasure.  If  the 


2i8  MONTAIGNE 

ordinary  fortune  fail,  she  does  without  it,  and  forms  another, 
wholly  her  own,  not  so  fickle  and  unsteady  as  the  other. 
She  can  be  rich,  be  potent  and  wise,  and  knows  how  to  lie 
upon  soft  perfumed  beds :  she  loves  life,  beauty,  glory,  and 
health;  but  her  proper  and  peculiar  office  is  to  know  how  to 
regulate  the  use  of  all  these  good  things,  and  how  to  lose 
them  without  concern :  an  office  much  more  noble  than 
troublesome,  and  without  which  the  whole  course  of  life  is 
unnatural,  turbulent,  and  deformed,  and  there  it  is  indeed, 
that  men  may  justly  represent  those  monsters  upon  rocks 
and  precipices. 

If  this  pupil  shall  happen  to  be  of  so  contrary  a  disposi- 
tion, that  he  had  rather  hear  a  tale  of  a  tub  than  the  true 
narrative  of  some  noble  expedition  or  some  wise  and  learned 
discourse;  who  at  the  beat  of  drum,  that  excites  the  youth- 
ful ardor  of  his  companions,  leaves  that  to  follow  another 
that  calls  to  a  morris  or  the  bears ;  who  would  not  wish,  and 
find  it  more  delightful  and  more  excellent,  to  return  all  dust 
and  sweat  victorious  from  a  battle,  than  from  tennis  or  from 
a  ball,  with  the  prize  of  those  exercises;  I  see  no  other 
remedy,  but  that  he  be  bound  prentice  in  some  good  town 
to  learn  to  make  minced  pies,  though  he  were  the  son  of  a 
duke;  according  to  Plato's  precept,  that  children  are  to  be 
placed  out  and  disposed  of,  not  according  to  the  wealth, 
qualities,  or  condition  of  the  father,  but  according  to  the 
faculties  and  the  capacity  of  their  own  souls. 

Since  philosophy  is  that  which  instructs  us  to  live  and 
that  infancy  has  there  its  lessons  as  well  as  other  ages,  why 
is  it  not  communicated  to  children  betimes? 

"  Udum  et  molle  lutum  est ;  nunc,  nunc  properandus,  et  acri 
Fingendus  sine  fine  rota."  1 

1 "  The    clay    is    moist    and    soft:    now,    now    make    haste,    and    form    the 
pitcher  on  the  rapid  wheel." —  PERSIUS,  iii.  23. 


They  begin  to  teach  us  to  live  when  we  have  almost  done 
living.  .  .  .  Cicero  said,  that  though  he  should  live 
two  men's  ages,  he  should  never  find  leisure  to  study  the 
lyric  poets ;  and  I  find  these  sophisters  yet  more  deplorably 
unprofitable.  The  boy  we  would  breed  has  a  great  deal  less 
time  to  spare ;  he  owes  but  the  first  fifteen  or  sixteen  years  of 
his  life  to  education ;  the  remainder  is  due  to  action.  Let  us, 
therefore,  employ  that  short  time  in  necessary  instruction. 
Away  with  the  thorny  subtleties  of  dialectics,  they  are 
abuses,  things  by  which  our  lives  can  never  be  amended: 
take  the  plain  philosophical  discourses,  learn  how  rightly  to 
choose,  and  then  rightly  to  apply  them ;  they  are  more  easy 
to  be  understood  than  one  of  Boccaccio's  novels  ;  a  child  from 
nurse  is  much  more  capable  of  them,  than  of  learning  to 
read  or  to  write.  Philosophy  has  discourses  proper  for 
childhood,  as  well  as  for  the  decrepit  age  of  men. 

I  am  of  Plutarch's  mind,  that  Aristotle  did  not  so  much 
trouble  his  great  disciple  with  the  knack  of  forming  syllo- 
gisms, or  with  the  elements  of  geometry,  as  with  infusing 
into  him  good  precepts  concerning  valor,  prowess,  magna- 
nimity, temperance,  and  the  contempt  of  fear;  and  with 
this  ammunition,  sent  him,  while  yet  a  boy,  with  no  more 
than  thirty  thousand  foot,  four  thousand  horse,  and  but 
forty-two  thousand  crowns,  to  subjugate  the  empire  of  the 
whole  earth.  For  the  other  arts  and  sciences,  he  says, 
Alexander  highly  indeed  commended  their  excellence  and 
charm,  and  had  them  in  very  great  honor  and  esteem,  but 
not  ravished  with  them  to  that  degree,  as  to  be  tempted  to 
affect  the  practice  of  them  in  his  own  person. 

"  Petite  hinc,  juvenesque  senesque, 
Finem  animo  certum,  miserisque  viatica  canis."  l 

1  "  Young  men   and  old  men,  derive  hence  a   certain   end   to   the  mind,   and 
stores  for  miserable  gray  hairs." —  PERSIUS,  v.  64. 


220  MONTAIGNE 

Epicurus,  in  the  beginning  of  his  letter  to  Meniceus, 
says,  "  That  neither  the  youngest  should  refuse  to  philoso- 
phize, nor  the  oldest  grow  weary  of  it."  Who  does  other- 
wise, seems  tacitly  to  imply,  that  either  the  time  of  living 
happily  is  not  yet  come,  or  that  it  is  already  past.  And 
yet,  for  all  that,  I  would  not  have  this  pupil  of  ours  im- 
prisoned and  made  a  slave  to  his  book;  nor  would  I  have 
him  given  up  to  the  morosity  and  melancholic  humor  of  a 
sour,  ill-natured  pedant;  I  would  not  have  his  spirit  cowed 
and  subdued,  by  applying  him  to  the  rack,  and  torment- 
ing him,  as  some  do,  fourteen  or  fifteen  hours  a  day,  and 
so  make  a  pack-horse  of  him.  Neither  should  I  think  it 
good,  when,  by  reason  of  a  solitary  and  melancholic  com- 
plexion, he  is  discovered  to  be  overmuch  addicted  to  his 
book,  to  nourish  that  humor  in  him ;  for  that  renders  him 
unfit  for  civil  conversation,  and  diverts  him  from  better 
employments.  And  how  many  have  I  seen  in  my  time 
totally  brutified  by  an  immoderate  thirst  after  knowledge? 
Carneades  was  so  besotted  with  it,  that  he  would  not  find 
time  as  so  much  as  to  comb  his  head  or  to  pare  his  nails. 
Neither  would  I  have  his  generous  manners  spoiled  and 
corrupted  by  the  incivility  and  barbarism  of  those  of  an- 
other. The  French  wisdom  was  anciently  turned  into 
proverb :  "  early,  but  of  no  continuance."  And,  in  truth, 
we  yet  see,  that  nothing  can  be  more  ingenious  and  pleas- 
ing than  the  children  of  France ;  but  they  ordinarily  de- 
ceive the  hope  and  expectation  that  have  been  conceived 
of  them;  and  grown  up  to  be  men,  have  nothing  extra- 
ordinary or  worth  taking  notice  of:  I  have  heard  men  of 
good  understanding  say,  these  colleges  of  ours  to  which  we 
send  our  young  people  (and  of  which  we  have  but  too 
many)  make  them  such  animals  as  they  are. 

But  to  our  little  monsieur,  a  closet,  a  garden,  the  table, 
his  bed,  solitude  and  company,  morning  and  evening,  all 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  221 

hours  shall  be  the  same,  and  all  places  to  him  a  study;  for 
philosophy,  who,  as  the  formatrix  of  judgment  and  man- 
ners, shall  be  his  principal  lesson,  has  that  privilege  to 
have  a  hand  in  everything.  The  orator  Isocrates,  being 
at  a  feast  entreated  to  speak  of  his  art,  all  the  company 
were  satisfied  with  and  commended  his  answer :  "  It  is  not 
now  a  time,"  said  he,  "  to  do  what  I  can  do ;  and  that 
which  it  is  now  time  to  do,  I  cannot  do."  For  to  make 
orations  and  rhetorical  disputes  in  a  company  met  together 
to  laugh  and  make  good  cheer,  had  been  very  unseasonable 
and  improper,  and  as  much  might  have  been  said  of  all 
the  other  sciences.  But  as  to  what  concerns  philosophy, 
that  part  of  it  at  least  that  treats  of  man,  and  of  his  offices 
and  duties,  it  has  been  the  common  opinion  of  all  wise 
men,  that,  out  of  respect  to  the  sweetness  of  her  conversa- 
tion, she  is  ever  to  be  admitted  in  all  sports  and  entertain- 
ments. And  Plato,  having  invited  her  to  his  feast,  we  see 
after  how  gentle  and  obliging  a  manner,  accommodated 
both  to  time  and  place,  she  entertained  the  company,  though 
in  a  discourse  of  the  highest  and  most  important  nature. 

"  ^que  pauperibus  prodest  locupletibus  aeque ; 
Et,  neglecta,  seque  pueris  senibusque  nocebit."  1 

By  this  method  of  instruction,  my  young  pupil  will  be 
much  more  and  better  employed  than  his  fellows  of  the 
college  are.  But  as  the  steps  we  take  in  walking  to  and 
fro  in  a  gallery,  though  three  times  as  many,  do  not  tire  a 
man  so  much  as  those  we  employ  in  a  formal  journey,  so 
our  lesson,  as  it  were  accidentally  occurring,  without  any 
set  obligation  of  time  or  place,  and  falling  naturally  into 
every  action,  will  insensibly  insinuate  itself.  By  which 
means  our  very  exercises  and  recreations,  running,  wres- 

1 "  It   profits   poor   and   rich    alike,    but,   neglected,   equally   hurts   old    and 
young." —  HORACE,  Ep.,  i.  1,  25. 


223  MONTAIGNE 

tling,  music,  dancing,  hunting,  riding,  and  fencing,  will 
prove  to  be  a  good  part  of  our  study.  I  would  have  his 
outward  fashion  and  mien  and  the  disposition  of  his  limbs, 
formed  at  the  same  time  with  his  mind.  Tis  not  a  soul, 
'tis  not  a  body  that  we  are  training  up,  but  a  man,  and  we 
ought  not  to  divide  him.  And,  as  Plato  says,  we  are  not 
to  fashion  one  without  the  other,  but  make  them  draw 
together  like  two  horses  harnessed  to  a  coach.  By  which 
saying  of  his,  does  he  not  seem  to  allow  more  time  for,  and 
to  take  more  care  of,  exercises  for  the  body,  and  to  hold 
that  the  mind,  in  a  good  proportion,  does  her  business  at 
the  same  time  too? 

As  to  the  rest,  this  method  of  education  ought  to  be 
carried  on  with  a  severe  sweetness,  quite  contrary  to  the 
practice  of  our  pedants,  who,  instead  of  tempting  and 
alluring  children  to  letters  by  apt  and  gentle  ways,  do  in 
truth  present  nothing  before  them  but  rods  and  ferules, 
horror  and  cruelty.  Away  with  this  violence!  away  with 
this  compulsion!  than  which,  I  certainly  believe  nothing 
more  dulls  and  degenerates  a  well-descended  nature.  If 
you  would  have  him  apprehend  shame  and  chastisement,  do 
not  harden  him  to  them:  inure  him  to  heat  and  cold,  to 
wind  and  sun,  and  to  dangers  that  he  ought  to  despise ; 
wean  him  from  all  effeminacy  and  delicacy  in  clothes  and 
lodging,  eating  and  drinking-,  accustom  him  to  everything, 
that  he  may  not  be  a  Sir  Paris,  a  carpet-knight,  but  a 
sinewy,  hardy,  and  vigorous  young  man.  I  have  ever  from 
a  child  to  the  age  wherein  I  now  am,  been  of  this  opinion, 
and  am  still  constant  to  it.  But  among  other  things,  the 
strict  government  of  most  of  our  colleges  has  evermore 
displeased  me;  peradventure,  they  might  have  erred  less 
perniciously  on  the  indulgent  side.  'Tis  a  real  house  of 
correction  of  imprisoned  youth.  They  are  made  debauched, 
by  being  punished  before  they  are  so.  Do  but  come  in 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  223 

when  they  are  about  their  lesson,  and  you  shall  hear  nothing 
but  the  outcries  of  boys  under  execution,  with  the  thunder- 
ing noise  of  their  pedagogues  drunk  with  fury.  A  very 
pretty  way  this,  to  tempt  these  tender  and  timorous  souls 
to  love  their  book,  with  a  furious  countenance,  and  a  rod 
in  hand! 

The  conduct  of  our  lives  is  the  true  mirror  of  our  doc- 
trine. Zeuxidamus,  to  one  who  asked  him  why  the  Lace- 
daemonians did  not  commit  their  constitutions  of  chivalry 
to  writing,  and  deliver  them  to  their  young  men  to  read, 
made  answer  that  it  was  because  they  would  inure  them 
to  action,  and  not  amuse  them  with  words.  With  such 
a  one,  after  fifteen  or  sixteen  years'  study,  compare  one 
of  our  college  Latinists,  who  has  thrown  away  so  much 
time  in  nothing  but  learning  to  speak.  The  world  is  noth- 
ing but  babble ;  and  I  hardly  ever  yet  saw  that  man  who 
did  not  rather  prate  too  much,  than  speak  too  little.  And 
yet  half  of  our  age  is  embezzled  this  way:  we  are  kept 
four  or  five  years  to  learn  words  only,  and  to  tack  them 
together  into  clauses ;  as  many  more  to  form  them  into  a 
long  discourse,  divided  into  four  or  five  parts ;  and  other 
five  years,  at  least,  to  learn  succinctly  to  mix  and  inter- 
weave them  after  a  subtle  and  intricate  manner:  let  us 
leave  all  this  to  those  who  make  a  profession  of  it. 

Going  one  day  to  Orleans,  I  met  in  the  plain  on  this  side 
Clery,  two  pedants  traveling  toward  Bordeaux,  about  fifty 
paces  distant  from  one  another ;  and  a  good  way  further 
behind  them,  I  discovered  a  troop  of  horse,  with  a  gentle- 
man at  the  head  of  them,  who  was  the  late  Monsieur  le 
Comte  de  la  Rochefoucauld.  One  of  my  people  inquired  of 
the  foremost  of  these  dominies,  who  that  gentleman  was 
that  came  after  him ;  he,  having  not  seen  the  train  that 
followed  after,  and  thinking  his  companion  was  meant, 
pleasantly  answered :  "  He  is  not  a  gentleman,  he  is  a 


224  MONTAIGNE 

grammarian,  and  I  am  a  logician."  Now  we  who,  quite 
contrary,  do  not  here  pretend  to  breed  a  grammarian  or  a 
logician,  but  a  gentleman,  let  us  leave  them  to  throw  away 
their  time  at  their  own  fancy:  our  business  lies  elsewhere. 
Let  but  our  pupil  be  well  furnished  with  things,  words 
will  follow  but  too  fast ;  he  will  pull  them  after  him  if  they 
do  not  voluntarily  follow.  I  have  observed  some  to  make 
excuses,  that  they  cannot  express  themselves,  and  pretend 
to  have  their  fancies  full  of  a  great  many  very  fine  things, 
which  yet,  for  want  of  eloquence,  they  cannot  utter;  'tis  a 
mere  shift,  and  nothing  else.  Will  you  know  what  I  think 
of  it?  I  think  they  are  nothing  but  shadows  of  some  im- 
perfect images  and  conceptions  that  they  know  not  what  to 
make  of  within,  nor  consequently  bring  out:  they  do  not 
yet  themselves  understand  what  they  would  be  at,  and"  if 
you  but  observe  how  they  haggle  and  stammer  upon  the 
point  of  parturition,  you  will  soon  conclude,  that  their 
labor  is  not  to  delivery,  but  ab6ut  conception,  and  that 
they  are  but  licking  their  formless  embryo.  For  my  part, 
I  hold,  and  Socrates  commends  it,  that  whoever  has  in  his 
mind  a  sprightly  and  clear  imagination,  he  will  express  it 
well  enough  in  one  kind  of  tongue  or  another,  and,  if  he  be 
dumb,  by  signs: 

"  Verbaque  prsevisam  rem  non  invita  sequentur." 1 

I  would  have  things  so  excelling,  and  so  wholly  possessing 
the  imagination  of  him  that  hears,  that  he  should  have 
something  else  to  do,  than  to  think  of  words.  The  way 
of  speaking  that  I  love,  is  natural  and  plain,  the  same  in 
writing  as  in  speaking,  and  a  sinewy  and  muscular  way  of 
expressing  a  man's  self,  short  and  pithy,  not  so  elegant  and 
artificial  as  prompt  and  vehement: 

1  "  Once  a   thing  is   conceived   in   the   mind,   the   words   to   express  it   soon 
present  themselves." — HORACE,  De  Arte  Poetica,  v.   311. 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE     .  225 

"  Haec  demum  sapiet  dictio,  quae  feriet ;  "  1 

rather  hard  than  wearisome;  free  from  affectation;  ir- 
regular, incontinuous,  and  bold;  where  every  piece  makes 
up  an  entire  body ;  not  like  a  pedant,  a  preacher,  or  a  pleader, 
but  rather  a  soldier-like  style,  as  Suetonius  calls  that  of 
Julius  Caesar. 

No  doubt  but  Greek  and  Latin  are  very  great  ornaments, 
and  of  very  great  use,  but  we  buy  them  too  dear.  I  will 
here  discover  one  way,  which  has  been  experimented  in  my 
own  person,  by  which  they  are  to  be  had  better  cheap,  and 
such  may  make  use  of  it  as  will.  My  late  father  having 
made  the  most  precise  inquiry  that  any  man  could  possibly 
make  among  men  of  the  greatest  learning  and  judgment, 
of  an  exact  method  of  education,  was  by  them  cautioned  of 
this  inconvenience  then  in  use,  and  made  to  believe,  that 
the  tedious  time  we  applied  to  the  learning  of  the  tongues 
of  them  who  had  them  for  nothing,  was  the  sole  cause  we 
could  not  arrive  to  the  grandeur  of  soul  and  perfection  of 
knowledge,  of  the  ancient  Greeks  and  Romans.  I  do  not, 
however,  believe  that  to  be  the  only  cause.  However,  the 
expedient  my  father  found  out  for  this  was,  that  in  my 
infancy,  and  before  I  began  to  speak,  he  committed  me  to 
the  care  of  a  German,  who  since  died  a  famous  physician 
in  France,  totally  ignorant  of  our  language,  but  very  fluent, 
and  a  great  critic  in  Latin.  This  man,  whom  he  had 
fetched  out  of  his  own  country,  and  whom  he  entertained 
with  a  very  great  salary  for  this  only  end,  had  me  con- 
tinually with  him :  to  him  there  were  also  joined  two  others, 
of  inferior  learning,  to  attend  me,  and  to  relieve  him;  who 
all  of  them  spoke  to  me  in  no  other  language  but  Latin. 
As  to  the  rest  of  his  family,  it  was  an  inviolable  rule,  that 

1  "  That  has  most  weight  and  wisdom  which  pierces  the  ear." — Epitaph  on 
Lucan,  in  Fabricus,   Biblioth.   Lat.,  ii.    10. 
PAINTER  FED.   Ess. — 15 


226  MONTAIGNE 

neither  himself,  nor  my  mother,  man  nor  maid,  should 
speak  anything  in  my  company,  but  such  Latin  words  as 
every  one  had  learned  only  to  gabble  with  me.  It  is  not  to 
be  imagined  how  great  an  advantage  this  proved  to  the  whole 
family;  my  father  and  my  mother  by  this  means  learned 
Latin  enough  to  understand  it  perfectly  well,  and  to  speak 
it  to  such  a  degree  as  was  sufficient  for  any  necessary  use; 
as  also  those  of  the  servants  did  who  were  most  frequently 
with  me.  In  short,  we  Latined  it  at  such  a  rate,  that  it 
overflowed  to  all  the  neighboring  villages,  where  there  yet 
remain,  that  have  established  themselves  by  custom,  several 
Latin  appellations  of  artisans  and  their  tools.  As  for  what 
concerns  myself,  I  was  above  six  years  of  age  before  I 
understood  either  French  or  Perigordin,  any  more  than 
Arabic;  and  without  art,  book,  grammar,  or  precept,  whip- 
ping, or  the  expense  of  a  tear,  I  had,  by  that  time,  learned 
to  speak  as  pure  Latin  as  my  master  himself,  for  I  had  no 
means  of  mixing  it  up  with  any  other. 

As  to  Greek,  of  which  I  have  but  a  mere  smattering, 
my  father  also  designed  to  have  it  taught  me  by  a  device, 
but  a  new  one,  and  by  way  of  sport ;  tossing  our  declensions 
to  and  fro,  after  the  manner  of  those  who,  by  certain 
games  at  tables  and  chess,  learn  geometry  and  arithmetic. 
For  he,  among  other  rules,  had  been  advised  to  make  me 
relish  science  and  duty  by  an  unforced  will,  and  of  my 
own  voluntary  motion,  and  to  educate  my  soul  in  all 
liberty  and  delight,  without  any  severity  or  constraint; 
which  he  was  an  observer  of  to  such  a  degree,  even  of 
superstition,  if  I  may  say  so,  that  some  being  of  opinion 
that  it  troubles  and  disturbs  the  brains  of  children  sud- 
denly to  wake  them  in  the  morning,  and  to  snatch  them 
violently  and  over-hastily  from  sleep  (wherein  they  are  much 
more  profoundly  involved  than  we),  he  caused  me 


SELECTION  FROM  MONTAIGNE  227 

to  be  wakened  by  the  sound  of  some  musical  instrument, 
and  was  never  unprovided  of  a  musician  for  that  purpose. 
Secondly,  like  those,  who,  impatient  of  a  long  and  steady 
cure,  submit  to  all  sorts  of  prescriptions  and  recipes,  the 
good  man  being  extremely  timorous  of  any  way  failing  in 
a  thing  he  had  so  wholly  set  his  heart  upon,  suffered  him- 
self at  last  to  be  overruled  by  the  common  opinions ;  which 
always  follow  their  leader  as  a  flight  of  cranes,  and  com- 
plying with  the  method  of  the  time,  having  no  more  those 
persons  he  had  brought  out  of  Italy,  and  who  had  given 
him  the  first  model  of  education,  about  him,  he  sent  me  at 
six  years  of  age  to  the  College  of  Guienne,  at  that  time  the 
best  and  most  flourishing  in  France.  And  there  it  was 
not  possible  to  add  anything  to  the  care  he  had  to  provide 
me  the  most  able  tutors,  with  all  other  circumstances  of 
education,  reserving  also  several  particular  rules  contrary 
to  the  college  practice;  but  so  it  was,  that  with  all  these 
precautions  it  was  a  college  still.  My  Latin  immediately 
grew  corrupt,  of  which  also  by  discontinuance  I  have  since 
lost  all  manner  of  use;  so  that  this  new  way  of  education 
served  me  to  no  other  end,  than  only  at  my  first  coming  to 
prefer  me  to  the  first  forms ;  for  at  thirteen  years  old,  that 
I  came  out  of  the  college,  I  had  run  through  my  whole 
course  (as  they  call  it),  and,  in  truth,  without  any  manner 
of  advantage,  that  I  can  honestly  brag  of,  in  all  this  time. 


XV.    ROGER  ASCHAM. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Roger  Ascham  holds  an  honored  place  in  the  long  line  of 
English  scholars  and  teachers.  He  was  born  in  1515  and 
died  in  1568;  thus  his  life  fell  in  the  agitated  reigns  of 
Henry  VIII.,  Mary,  and  Elizabeth.  He  was  graduated 
from  St.  John's  College,  Oxford,  in  1537.  He  was  there 
under  the  instruction  of  Sir  John  Cheke,  a  man  of  admir- 
able character  and  learning,  to  whom  he  ever  afterwards 
expressed  a  sense  of  deep  obligation.  After  his  gradu- 
ation he  became  a  college  tutor  and  received  an  appointment 
to  read  Greek  in  the  public  schools.  In  1545  he  published 
a  work  on  archery  entitled  "  Toxophilus,  or  the  School  of 
Shooting."  He  thought  it  necessary  to  apologize  for  using 
the  mother  tongue,  in  which,  as  he  tells  us,  he  tried  to 
follow  the  advice  of  Aristotle  "  to  speake  as  the  common 
people  do,  to  thinke  as  wise  men  do." 

In  1848  he  became  tutor  to  the  lady  Elizabeth,  after- 
wards the  illustrious  queen,  to  whom  for  two  years  he  gave 
instruction  in  the  ancient  languages.  His  position  as  tutor 
and  Latin  secretary  introduced  him  to  the  society  of  the 
nobility.  It  was  at  the  suggestion  of  Sir  Richard  Sackville 
that  he  wrote  "  The  Scholemaster,"  by  which  his  name  is 
chiefly  known  in  English  literature  and  English  pedagogy. 

The  work  is  not  throughout  original.  Besides  the  ideas 
borrowed  from  Sir  John  Cheke  and  John  Sturm,  the  dis- 
tinguished educator  of  Strasburg,  Ascham  naturally  drew 
largely,  at  this  renaissance  period,  from  the  ancients, 

228 


229 

among  whom  he  specifies  Plato,  Aristotle,  and  Cicero.  The 
preparation  of  the  work  was  interrupted  by  the  death  of 
Sir  Richard  Sackville.  "  When  he  was  gone,"  Ascham 
tells  us  in  the  preface,  "  my  heart  was  dead.  There  was 
not  one  that  wore  a  black  gown  for  him  who  carried  a 
heavier  heart  for  him  than  I.  When  he  was  gone,  I  cast 
this  book  away ;  I  could  not  look  upon  it  but  with  weeping 
eyes,  in  remembering  him  who  was  the  only  setter  on  to 
do  it,  and  would  have  been  not  only  a  glad  commender  of 
it,  but  also  a  sure  and  certain  comfort  to  me  and  mine 
for  it."  The  work  was  published  posthumously  by  his  wife. 

"  The  Scholemaster  "  is  a  book  of  nearly  three  hundred 
pages.  Its  general  character  is  fully  set  forth  in  the  orig- 
inal title  page  bearing  date  1570:  "THE  SCHOLEMASTER; 
or  plaine  and  perfite  way  of  teachyng  children  to  under- 
stand, write,  and  speake  in  Latin  tong,  but  specially  pur- 
posed for  the  private  brynging  up  of  youth  in  Gentlemen 
and  Noble  mens  houses,  and  commodious  also  for  all  such 
as  have  forgot  the  Latin  tonge,  and  would  by  themselves, 
without  a  Scholemaster,  in  short  tyme,  and  with  small 
paines,  recover  a  sufficient  hability  to  understand,  write, 
and  speake  Latin." 

In  teaching  Latin  Ascham  advocates  the  inductive  method 
which,  with  variations,  has  been  so  often  tried  since  his 
day.  After  learning  the  eight  parts  of  speech  and  the 
general  principles  of  agreement,  the  child  is  to  take  up 
Sturm's  collection  of  Cicero's  Letters.  "  First,"  continues 
Ascham,  "  let  the  master  teach  the  child,  cheerfully  and 
plainly,  the  cause  and  matter  of  the  letter ;  then  let  him 
construe  it  into  English  so  oft  as  the  child  may  easily 
carry  away  the  understanding  of  it.  Lastly,  parse  it  over 
perfectly.  This  done  thus,  let  the  child  by  and  by  both 
construe  and  parse  it  over  again ;  so  that  it  may  appear 
that  the  child  doubteth  in  nothing  that  his  master  taught 


230  ROGER  ASCHAM 

him  before.  After  this,  the  child  must  take  a  paper  book, 
and  sitting  in  some  place  where  no  man  shall  prompt  him, 
by  himself  let  him  translate  into  English  his  former  lesson. 
Then  showing  it  to  his  master,  let  the  master  take  from 
him  his  Latin  book,  and  pausing  an  hour  at  the  least,  then 
let  the  child  translate  his  own  English  into  Latin  again 
in  another  paper  book.  When  the  child  bringeth  it  turned 
into  Latin,  the  master  must  compare  it  with  Tully's  book 
and  lay  them  both  together;  and  where  the  child  doth  well, 
either  in  choosing  or  true  placing  of  Tully's  words,  let  the 
master  praise  him,  and  say  here  ye  do  well.  For  I  assure 
you,  there  is  no  such  whetstone  to  sharpen  a  good  wit  and 
encourage  a  will  to  learning  as  is  praise." 

The  selection  that  follows  has  been  chosen  for  its  gen- 
eral pedagogical  interest.  It  will  be  observed  that  Ascham 
is  an  ardent  advocate  of  gentle  methods  in  teaching,  and 
that  he  exhibits  a  rare  consideration  for  the  patient,  cap- 
able plodder. 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM. 

THE    SCHOLEMASTER. 

I  have  now  wished,  twice  or  thrice,  this  gentle  nature 
to  be  in  a  scholemaster.  And,  that  I  have  done  so,  neither 
by  chance,  nor  without  some  reason,  I  will  now  declare  at 
large,  why,  in  mine  opinion,  love  is  fitter  than  fear,  gentle- 
ness better  than  beating,  to  bring  up  a  child  rightly  in 
learning. 

With  the  common  use  of  teaching  and  beating  in  com- 
mon schools  of  England,  I  will  not  greatly  contend:  which 
if  I  did,  it  were  but  a  small  grammatical  controversy, 
neither  belonging  to  heresy  nor  treason,  nor  greatly  touch- 
ing God  nor  the  prince;  although  in  very  deed,  in  the  rod, 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM  231 

the  good  or  ill  bringing  up  of  children  doth  as  much  serve 
to  the  good  or  ill  service  of  God,  our  prince,  and  our  whole 
country,  as  any  one  thing  doth  beside. 

I  do  gladly  agree  with  all  good  scholemasters  in  these 
points:  to  have  children  brought  to  good  perfectness  in 
learning;  to  all  honesty  in  manners;  to  have  all  faults 
rightly  amended;  to  have  every  vice  severely  corrected; 
but  for  the  order  and  way  that  leadeth  rightly  to  these 
points,  we  somewhat  differ.  For  commonly  many  schole- 
masters, some  as  I  have  seen,  and  more  as  I  have  heard 
tell,  be  of  so  crooked  a  nature,  as,  when  they  meet  with 
a  hard-witted  scholar,  they  rather  break  him  than  bow 
him,  rather  mar  him  than  mend  him.  For  when  the  schole- 
master  is  angry  with  some  other  matter,  then  will  he 
soonest  fall  to  beat  his  scholars;  and  though  he  himself 
should  be  punished  for  his  folly,  yet  must  he  beat  some 
scholar  for  his  pleasure ;  though  there  be  no  cause  for  him 
to  do  so,  nor  yet  fault  in  the  scholar  to  deserve  so.  These, 
we  will  say,  be  fond  scholemasters ;  and  few  they  be  that 
be  found  to  be  such.  They  be  fond  in  deed,  but  surely 
over  many  such  be  found  everywhere.  But  this  I  will  say, 
that  even  the  wisest  of  your  great  beaters  do  as  oft  punish 
nature  as  they  do  correct  faults.  Yea,  many  times  the 
better  nature  is  over  punished.  For  if  one,  by  quickness  of 
wit,  take  his  lesson  readily,  another,  by  hardness  of  wit, 
taketh  it  not  so  speedily ;  the  first  is  always  commended, 
the  other  is  commonly  punished ;  when  a  wise  schole- 
master  should  rather  discreetly  consider  the  right  disposi- 
tion of  both  their  natures,  and  not  so  much  weigh  what 
either  of  them  is  able  to  do  now,  as  what  either  of  them 
is  likely  to  do  hereafter.  For  this  I  know,  not  only  by 
reading  of  books  in  my  study,  but  also  by  experience  of 
life  abroad  in  the  world,  that  those  which  be  commonly  the 
wisest,  the  best  learned,  and  best  men  also,  when  they  be 


232  ROGER  ASCHAM 

old,  were  never  commonly  the  quickest  of  wit  when  they 
were  young.  The  causes  why,  amongst  others  which  be 
many,  that  move  me  thus  to  think,  be  these  few,  which  I 
will  reckon.  Quick  wits  commonly  be  apt  to  take,  unapt  to 
keep;  soon  hot,  and  desirous  of  this  and  that;  as  cold 
and  soon  weary  of  the  same  again;  more  quick  to  enter 
speedily  than  able  to  pierce  far;  even  like  over-sharp  tools, 
whose  edges  be  very  soon  turned.  Such  wits  delight  them- 
selves in  easy  and  pleasant  studies,  and  never  pass  far 
forward  in  high  and  hard  sciences.  And  therefore  the 
quickest  wits  commonly  prove  the  best  poets,  but  not  the 
wisest  orators ;  ready  of  tongue  to  speak  boldly,  not  deep 
of  judgment,  either  for  good  counsel  or  wise  writing. 
Also  for  manners  and  life,  quick  wits  commonly  be  in 
desire  newfangled,  in  purpose  unconstant,  light  to  promise 
anything,  ready  to  forget  everything,  both  benefit  and  in- 
jury ;  and  thereby  neither  fast  to  friend,  nor  fearful  to  foe ; 
inquisitive  of  every  trifle,  not  secret  in  greatest  affairs ; 
bold  with  any  person,  busy  in  every  matter;  soothing  such 
as  be  present,  nipping  any  that  is  absent;  of  nature  also 
always  flattering  their  betters,  envying  their  equals,  despis- 
ing their  inferiors ;  and  by  quickness  of  wit,  very  quick 
and  ready  to  like  none  so  well  as  themselves. 

Moreover,  commonly  men  very  quick  of  wit  be  also  very 
light  of  conditions,  and  thereby  very  ready  of  disposition  to 
be  carried  over  quickly,  by  any  light  company,  to  any  riot 
and  unthriftiness  when  they  be  young;  and  therefore  sel- 
dom either  honest  of  life  or  rich  in  living  when  they  be  old. 
For  quick  in  wit  and  light  in  manners  be  either  seldom 
troubled  or  very  soon  weary  in  carrying  a  very  heavy  purse. 
Quick  wits  also  be,  in  most  part  of  all  their  doings,  over 
quick,  hasty,  rash,  heady,  and  brainsick.  These  two  last 
words,  heady  and  brainsick,  be  fit  and  proper  words,  rising 
naturally  of  the  matter,  and  turned  aptly  by  the  condition, 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM  233 

of  over  much  quickness  of  wit.  In  youth  also  they  be  ready 
scoffers,  privy  mockers,  and  ever  over  light  and  merry. 
In  age  soon  testy,  very  waspish,  and  always  over  miser- 
able ;  and  yet  few  of  them  come  to  any  great  age,  by  reason 
of  their  misordered  life  when  they  were  young ;  but  a  great 
deal  fewer  of  them  come  to  show  any  great  countenance  or 
bear  any  great  authority  abroad  in  the  world,  but  either  live 
obscurely,  -men  know  not  how,  or  die  obscurely,  men  mark 
not  when.  They  be  like  trees  that  show  forth  fair  blossoms 
and  broad  leaves  in  spring  time,  but  bring  out  small  and 
not  long  lasting  fruit  in  harvest  time;  and  that  only  such 
as  fall  and  rot  before  they  be  ripe,  and  so  never  or  seldom 
come  to  any  good  at  all.  For  this  ye  shall  find  most  true 
by  experience  that,  amongst  a  number  of  quick  wits  in 
youth,  few  be  found  in  the  end  either  very  fortunate  for 
themselves  or  very  profitable  to  serve  the  commonwealth, 
but  decay  and  vanish,  men  know  not  which  way;  except  a 
very  few,  to  whom  peradventure  blood  and  happy  parent- 
age may  perchance  purchase  a  long  standing  upon  the 
stage.  The  which  felicity,  because  it  cometh  by  others' 
procuring,  not  by  their  own  deserving,  and  stand  by  other 
men's  feet,  and  not  by  their  own,  what  outward  brag  so 
ever  is  borne  by  them,  is  indeed,  of  itself  and  in  wise  men's 
eyes,  of  no  great  estimation. 

Some  wits,  moderate  enough  by  nature,  be  many  times 
marred  by  over  much  study  and  use  of  some  sciences, 
namely,  music,  arithmetic  and  geometry.  These  sciences, 
as  they  sharpen  men's  wits  over  much,  so  they  change  men's 
manners  over  sore,  if  they  be  not  moderately  mingled,  and 
wisely  applied  to  some  good  use  of  life.  Mark  all  mathe- 
matical heads,  which  be  only  and  wholly  bent  to  those 
sciences,  how  solitary  they  be  themselves,  how  unfit  to  live 
with  others,  and  how  unapt  to  serve  in  the  world.  This  is 
not  only  known  now  by  common  experience,  but  uttered 


234  ROGER  ASCHAM 

long  before  by  wise  men's  judgment  and  sentence.  Galen 
saith  much  music  marreth  men's  manners;  and  Plato  hath 
a  notable  place  of  the  same  thing  in  his  books  de  Rep.,  well 
marked  also,  and  excellently  translated  by  Tully  himself. 
Of  this  matter  I  wrote  once  more  at  large,  twenty  years 
ago,  in  my  book  of  shooting :  now  I  thought  but  to  touch  it, 
to  prove  that  over  much  quickness  of  wit,  either  given  by 
nature  or  sharpened  by  study,  doth  not  commonly  bring 
forth  either  greatest  learning,  best  manners,  or  happiest 
life  in  the  end. 

Contrariwise,  a  wit  in  youth  that  is  not  over  dull,  heavy, 
knotty,  and  lumpish,  but  hard,  rough,  and  though  somewhat 
starfish,  as  Tully  wisheth  otium,  quietum,  non  languidum, 
and  negotium  cum  labore,  non  cum  periculo,  such  a  wit 
I  say,  if  it  be  at  the  first  well  handled  by  the  mother,  and 
rightly  smoothed  and  wrought  as  it  should,  not  overthwart- 
ly  and  against  the  wood,  by  the  scholemaster,  both  for 
learning  and  whole  course  of  living,  proveth  always  the 
best.  In  wood  and  stone,  not  the  softest,  but  hardest  be  al- 
ways aptest  for  portraiture,  both  fairest  for  pleasure  and 
most  durable  for  profit.  Hard  wits  be  hard  to  receive,  but 
sure  to  keep;  painful  without  weariness,  heedful  without 
wavering,  constant  without  newfangleness ;  bearing  heavy 
things,  though  not  lightly,  yet  willingly;  entering  hard 
things,  though  not  easily,  yet  deeply;  and  so  come  to  that 
perfectness  of  learning  in  the  end,  that  quick  wits  seem  in 
hope,  but  do  not  indeed,  or  else  very  seldom,  ever  attain 
unto.  Also  for  manners  and  life,  hard  wits  commonly  are 
hardly  carried  either  to  desire  every  new  thing,  or  else  to 
marvel  at  every  strange  thing;  and  therefore  they  be  care- 
ful and  diligent  in  their  own  matters,  not  curious  and  busy 
in  other  men's  affairs ;  and  so  they  become  wise  themselves, 
and  are  also  counted  honest  by  others.  They  be  grave,  sted- 
fast,  silent  of  tongue,  secret  of  heart.  Not  hasty  in  mak- 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM  235 

ing,  but  constant  in  keeping  any  promise.  Not  rash  in 
uttering,  but  wary  in  considering  every  matter;  and  there- 
by, not  quick  in  speaking,  but  deep  of  judgment,  whether 
they  write  or  give  counsel  in  all  weighty  affairs.  And  these 
be  the  men  that  become  in  the  end  both  most  happy  for 
themselves,  and  always  best  esteemed  abroad  in  the  world. 

I  have  been  longer  in  describing  the  nature,  the  good  or 
ill  success  of  the  quick  and  hard  wit  than  perchance  some 
will  think  this  place  and  matter  doth  require.  But  my  pur- 
pose was  hereby  plainly  to  utter  what  injury  is  offered  to  all 
learning,  and  to  the  commonwealth  also,  first  by  the  fond 
father  in  choosing,  but  chiefly  by  the  lewd  scholemaster  in 
beating  and  driving  away  the  best  natures  from  learning. 
A  child  that  is  still,  silent,  constant,  and  somewhat  hard  of 
wit  is  either  never  chosen  by  the  father  to  be  made  a 
scholar,  or  else,  when  he  cometh  to  the  schole,  he  is  smally 
regarded,  little  looked  unto,  he  lacketh  teaching,  he  lacketh 
couraging,  he  lacketh  all  things,  only  he  never  lacketh 
beating,  nor  any  word  that  may  move  him  to  hate  learning, 
nor  any  deed  that  may  drive  him  from  learning  to  any 
other  kind  of  living. 

And  when  this  sad-natured  and  hard-witted  child  is  beat 
from  his  book,  and  becometh  after  either  student  of  the 
common  law,  or  page  in  the  court,  or  serving  man,  or  bound 
apprentice  to  a  merchant,  or  to  some  handicraft,  he  proveth 
in  the  end  wiser,  happier,  and  many  times  honester  too,  than 
many  of  these  quick  wits  do  by  their  learning. 

Learning  is  both  hindered  and  injured,  too,  by  the  ill 
choice  of  them  that  send  young  scholars  to  the  universities. 
Of  whom  must  needs  come  all  our  divines,  lawyers,  and 
physicians.  These  young  scholars  be  chosen  commonly,  as 
young  apples  be  chosen  by  children,  in  a  fair  garden  about 
St.  James'  tide;  a  child  will  choose  a  Sweeting,  because  it 
is  presently  fair  and  pleasant,  and  refuse  a  Runnet,  because 


236  ROGER  ASCHAM 

it  is  then  green,  hard,  and  sour,  when  the  one,  if  it  be 
eaten,  doth  breed  ill  humors ;  the  other,  if  it  stand  his  time, 
be  ordered  and  kept  as  it  should,  is  wholesome  of  itself,  and 
helpeth  to  the  good  digestion  of  other  meats.  Sweetings 
will  receive  worms,  rot,  and  die  on  the  tree,  and  never  or 
seldom  come  to  the  gathering  for  good  and  lasting  store. 

For  very  grief  of  heart  I  will  not  apply  the  similitude; 
but  hereby  is  plainly  seen  how  learning  is  robbed  of  its  best 
wits,  first  by  the  great  beating,  and  after  by  the  ill  choosing 
of  scholars  to  go  to  the  universities.  Whereof  cometh 
partly  that  lewd  and  spiteful  proverb,  sounding  to  the 
great  hurt  of  learning,  and  shame  of  learned  men,  that  the 
greatest  clerks  be  not  the  wisest  men. 

And  though  I,  in  all  this  discourse,  seem  plainly  to  pre- 
fer hard  and  rough  wits,  before  quick  and  light  wits,  both 
for  learning  and  manners,  yet  am  I  not  ignorant  that  some 
quickness  of  wit  is  a  singular  gift  of  God,  and  so  most 
rare  amongst  men,  and  namely  such  a  wit  as  is  quick  without 
lightness,  sharp  without  brittleness,  desirous  of  good  things 
without  newfangleness,  diligent  in  painful  things  without 
wearisomeness,  and  constant  in  good  will  to  do  all  things 
well,  as  I  know  was  in  Sir  John  Cheke,  and  is  in  some  that 
yet  live,  in  whom  all  these  fair  qualities  of  wit  are  fully  met 
together. 

And  speaking  thus  much  of  the  wits  of  children  for  learn- 
ing, the  opportunity  of  the  place,  and  goodness  of  the  mat- 
ter might  require  to  have  here  declared  the  most  special 
notes  of  a  good  wit  for  learning  in  a  child,  after  the  manner 
and  custom  of  a  good  horseman,  who  is  skilful  to  know, 
and  able  to  tell  others,  how  by  certain  sure  signs  a  man 
may  choose  a  colt  that  is  like  to  prove  another  day  excel- 
lent for  the  saddle.  And  it  is  pity  that  commonly  more  care 
is  had,  yea,  and  that  amongst  very  wise  men,  to  find  out 
rather  a  cunning  man  for  their  horse  than  a  cunning  man 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM  237 

for  their  children.  They  say  nay  in  word,  but  they  do  so  in 
deed.  For  to  the  one  they  will  gladly  give  a  stipend  of  200 
crowns  by  the  year,  and  loth  to  offer  to  the  other  200  shil- 
lings. God  that  sitteth  in  heaven  laugheth  their  choice  to 
scorn,  and  rewardeth  their  liberality  as  it  should;  for  he 
suffereth  them  to  have  tame  and  well  ordered  horse,  but 
wild  and  unfortunate  children;  and  therefore  in  the  end 
they  find  more  pleasure  in  their  horse  than  comfort  in  their 

children. 

***** 

Yet  some  will  say  that  children  of  nature  love  pastime 
and  mislike  learning,  because  in  their  kind  the  one  is  easy 
and  pleasant,  the  other  hard  and  wearisome :  which  is  an 
opinion  not  so  true  as  some  men  ween.  For  the  matter 
lieth  not  so  much  in  the  disposition  of  them  that  be  young, 
as  in  the  order  and  manner  of  bringing  up  by  them  that  be 
old,  nor  yet  in  the  difference  of  learning  and  pastime.  For 
beat  a  child  if  he  dance  not  well,  and  cherish  him  though  he 
learn  not  well,  ye  shall  have  him  unwilling  to  go  to  dance, 
and  glad  to  go  to  his  book.  Knock  him  always  when  he 
draweth  his  shaft  ill,  and  favor  him  again  though  he  fault 
at  his  book,  ye  shall  have  him  very  loth  to  be  in  the  field,  and 
very  willing  to  be  in  the  schole.  Yea,  I  say  more,  and  not 
of  myself,  but  by  the  judgment  of  those  from  whom  few 
wise  men  will  gladly  dissent,  that  if  ever  the  nature  of  man 
be  given  at  any  time  more  than  other  to  receive  goodness, 
it  is  in  innocency  of  young  years  before  that  experience 
of  evil  have  taken  root  in  him.  For  the  pure  clean  wit  of  a 
sweet  young  babe  is  like  the  newest  wax,  most  able  to  re- 
ceive the  best  and  fairest  printing;  and  like  a  new  bright 
silver  dish  never  occupied,  to  receive  and  keep  clean  any 
good  thing  that  is  put  into  it. 

And  thus  will  in  children,  wisely  wrought  withal,  may 
easily  be  won  to  be  very  well  willing  to  learn.  And  wit  in 


238  ROGER  ASCHAM 

children  by  nature,  namely  memory,  the  only  key  and  keeper 
of  all  learning,  is  readiest  to  receive  and  surest  to  keep  any 
manner  of  thing  that  is  learned  in  youth.  This  lewd  and 
learned,  by  common  experience,  know  to  be  most  true.  For 
we  remember  nothing  so  well  when  we  be  old,  as  those 
things  which  we  learned  when  we  were  young.  Therefore, 
if  to  the  goodness  of  nature  be  joined  the  wisdom  of  the 
teacher  in  leading  young  wits  into  a  right  and  plain  way 
of  learning,  surely  children,  kept  up  in  God's  fear  and  gov- 
erned by  his  grace,  may  most  easily  be  brought  well  to  serve 
God  and  country  both  by  virtue  and  wisdom. 

There  is  another  discommodity  besides  cruelty  in  schole- 
masters  in  beating  away  the  love  of  learning  from  children, 
which  hindereth  learning  and  virtue,  and  good  bringing 
up  of  youth,  and  namely  young  gentlemen,  very  much  in 
England.  This  fault  is  clean  contrary  to  the  first.  I  wished 
before  to  have  love  of  learning  bred  up  in  children ;  I  wish 
as  much  now  to  have  young  men  brought  up  in  good  order 
of  living,  and  in  some  more  severe  discipline  than  common- 
ly they  be.  We  have  lack  in  England  of  such  good  order 
as  the  old  noble  Persians  so  carefully  used,  whose  children, 
to  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  were  brought  up  in  learn- 
ing, and  exercises  of  labor,  and  that  in  such  place  where 
they  should  neither  see  that  was  uncomely  nor  hear  that 
was  unhonest.  Yea,  a  young  gentleman  was  never  free  to 
go  where  he  would  and  do  what  he  list  himself,  but  under 
the  keep  and  by  the  counsel  of  some  grave  governor,  un- 
til he  was  either  married  or  called  to  bear  some  office  in  the 
commonwealth. 

This  evil  is  not  common  to  poor  men,  as  God  will  have 
it,  but  proper  to  rich  and  great  men's  children,  as  they  de- 
serve it.  Indeed  from  seven  to  seventeen  young  gentlemen 
commonly  be  carefully  enough  brought  up.  But  from  seven- 
teen to  seven  and  twenty  (the  most  dangerous  time  of  all  a 


SELECTION  FROM  ROGER  ASCHAM  239 

man's  life,  and  most  slippery  to  stay  well  in)  they  have 
commonly  the  rein  of  all  license  in  their  own  hand,  and 
specially  such  as  do  live  in  the  court.  And  that  which  is 
most  to  be  marveled  at,  commonly  the  wisest  and  also  best 
men  be  found  the  fondest  fathers  in  this  behalf.  And  if 
some  good  father  would  seek  some  remedy  herein,  yet  the 
mother  (if  the  household  of  our  lady)  had  rather,  ye,a, 
and  will  to,  have  her  son  cunning  and  bold,  in  making  him 
to  live  trimly  when  he  is  young,  than  by  learning  and  travel 
to  be  able  to  serve  his  prince  and  his  country  both  wisely 
in  peace  and  stoutly  in  war  when  he  is  old. 

But  nobility,  governed  by  learning  and  wisdom,  is  indeed 
most  like  a  fair  ship,  having  tide  and  .wind  at  will,  under 
the  rule  of  a  skilful  master;  when  contrariwise,  a  ship  car- 
ried, yea,  by  the  highest  tide  and  greatest  wind,  lacking  a 
skilful  master,  most  commonly  doth  either  sink  itself  upon 
sands  or  break  itself  upon  rocks.  And  even  so,  how 
many  have  been  either  drowned  in  vain  pleasure  or  over- 
whelmed by  stout  wilfulness  the  histories  of  England  be 
able  to  afford  over  many  examples  unto  us.  Therefore,  ye 
great  and  noble  men's  children,  if  ye  will  have  right  fully 
that  praise,  and  enjoy  surely  that  place  which  your  fathers 
have,  and  elders  had,  and  left  unto  you,  ye  must  keep  it 
as  they  got  it,  and  that  is  by  the  only  way  of  virtue,  wis- 
dom and  worthiness. 


XVI.    JOHN  MILTON. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Milton  is  best  known  as  a  poet.  His  "  Paradise  Lost," 
one  of  the  world's  great  epics,  has  given  him  a  place  among 
the  greatest  singers  of  all  time.  But  he  was  more  than  a 
poet.  He  was  a  scholar  of  wide  attainments,  a  controver- 
sialist of  great  force,  a  patriot  of  unselfish  purpose,  and  an 
educator  of  broad  and  independent  spirit.  The  Common- 
wealth, it  was  said,  owed  its  standing  in  Europe  to  Crom- 
well's battles  and  Milton's  books. 

He  was  born  in  London,  December  9,  1608.  He  was 
educated  at  Cambridge,  where  he  spent  seven  years  and 
took  the  usual  degrees.  But  the  education  of  the  time  did 
not  approve  itself  to  his  judgment,  and  later,  as  will  be 
seen,  he  pointed  out  its  defects  of  subject  and  method  with 
trenchant  force.  He  left  the  university  in  1632,  and  spent 
the  next  five  years  in  private  study  at  his  father's  home  in 
Buckinghamshire.  Besides  reading  all  the  Greek  and  Latin 
writers  of  the  classic  period,  he  mastered  Italian,  and 
feasted,  as  he  tells  us,  "  with  avidity  and  delight  on  Dante 
and  Petrarch." 

Tiring  at  length  of  his  country  life,  Milton  left  England 
in  1638  for  a  tour  on  the  continent.  At  Paris  he  met 
Grotius,  one  of  the  most  learned  men  of  his  age,  who  re- 
sided at  the  French  capital  as  ambassador  from  the  Queen 
of  Sweden.  Afterwards  he  visited  the  principal  cities  of 
Italy,  and  was  everywhere  cordially  received  by  men  of  learn- 
ing. In  his  travels  he  preserved  an  admirable  and  cour- 

240 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  241 

ageous  independence;  and  even  under  the  shadow  of  St. 
Peter's  he  made  no  effort  to  conceal  his  Puritan  faith. 

He  was  about  to  extend  his  travels  to  Sicily  and  Greece 
when  the  news  of  the  civil  commotion  in  England  caused 
him  to  change  his  purpose.  "  I  thought  it  base,"  he  said, 
"  to  be  traveling  for  amusement  abroad,  while  my  fellow- 
citizens  were  righting  for  liberty  at  home."  Not  being 
called  to  serve  the  state  in  any  official  capacity  on  his  ar- 
rival in  London,  he  opened  a  private  school,  in  which  he 
tried  to  exemplify,  in  some  measure  at  least,  his  educational 
theories.  He  held  that  languages  should  be  studied,  not 
for  verbal  drill,  but  for  their  literary  treasures.  At  this 
period  in  his  life  he  entered  upon  the  religious  and  political 
controversies  of  the  time,  in  which  he  showed  himself  a 
stout  champion  of  Protestantism  and  the  Commonwealth. 

In  1644  Milton  published  two  treatises  that  will  long 
survive ;  the  first  is  his  "  Areopagitica,  or  Speech  for  the 
Liberty  of  Unlicensed  Printing,"  the  other  is  his  "  Tractate 
on  Education."  It  is  the  latter  work  that  places  him  in  the 
line  of  modern  educational  reformers.  It  was  written  at 
the  earnest  entreaty  of  Samuel  Hartlib,  a  friend  of  Milton's, 
who  was  interested  in  educational  reform  and  in  the  ad- 
vancement of  learning.  In  this  "  Tractate  "  Milton  under- 
takes to  "  set  down  in  writing,"  as  he  states  in  the  opening 
paragraph,  "  that  voluntary  idea,  which  hath  long  in  silence 
presented  itself  to  me,  of  a  better  education,  in  extent  and 
comprehension  far  more  large,  and  yet  of  time  far  shorter, 
and  of  attainment  far  more  certain,  than  hath  been  yet  in 
practice."  With  the  exception  of  the  introductory  para- 
graph, the  "  Tractate  "  is  here  given  in  its  entirety. 


PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 16 


242  JOHN  MILTON 

SELECTION  FROM  MILTON. 

A  TRACTATE  ON  EDUCATION. 

The  end,  then,  of  learning  is  to  repair  the  ruins  of  our 
first  parents  by  regaining  to  know  God  aright,  and  out  of 
that  knowledge  to  love  him,  to  imitate  him,  to  be  like  him, 
as  we  may  the  nearest  by  possessing  our  souls  of  true  vir- 
tue, which  being  united  to  the  heavenly  grace  of  faith, 
makes  up  the  highest  perfection.  But  because  our  under- 
standing cannot  in  this  body  found  itself  but  on  sensible 
things,  nor  arrive  so  clearly  to  the  knowledge  of  God  and 
things  invisible,  as  by  orderly  conning  over  the  visible  and 
inferior  creature;  the  same  method  is  necessarily  to  be  fol- 
lowed in  all  discreet  teaching.  And  seeing  every  nation 
affords  not  experience  and  tradition  enough  for  all  kind  of 
learning,  therefore  we  are  chiefly  taught  the  languages  of 
those  people  who  have  at  any  time  been  most  industrious 
after  wisdom ;  so  that  language  is  but  the  instrument  convey- 
ing to  us  things  useful  to  be  known.  And  though  a  linguist 
should  pride  himself  to  have  all  the  tongues  that  Babel 
cleft  the  world  into,  yet,  if  he  have  not  studied  the  solid 
things  in  them,  as  well  as  the  words  and  lexicons,  he  were 
nothing  so  much  to  be  esteemed  a  learned  man,  as  any  yeo- 
man or  tradesman,  competently  wise  in  his  mother-dialect 
only.  Hence  appear  the  many  mistakes  which  have  made 
learning  generally  so  unpleasing,  and  so  unsuccessful ;  first, 
we  do  amiss  to  spend  .seven  or  eight  years  merely  in  scrap- 
ing together  so  much  miserable  Latin  and  Greek,  as  might 
be  learned  otherwise  easily  and  delightfully  in  one  year. 
And  that  which  casts  our  proficiency  therein  so  much  be- 
hind, is  our  time  lost,  partly  in  too  oft  idle  vacancies  given 
both  to  schools  and  universities,  partly  in  a  preposterous  ex- 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  243 

action,  forcing  the  empty  wits  of  children  to  compose 
themes,  verses  and  orations,  which  are  the  acts  of  ripest 
judgment,  and  the  final  work  of  a  head  filled  by  long  read- 
ing and  observing,  with  elegant  maxims,  and  copious  inven- 
tion. These  are  not  matters  to  be  wrung  from  poor  strip- 
lings, like  blood  out  of  the  nose,  or  the  plucking  of  untime- 
ly fruit.  Besides  the  ill  habit  which  they  get  of  wretched 
barbarizing  against  the  Latin  and  Greek  idiom,  with  their 
untutored  Anglicisms,  odious  to  be  read,  yet  not  to  be 
avoided  without  a  well-continued  and  judicious  conversing 
among  pure  authors  digested,  which  they  scarce  taste ; 
whereas,  if  after  some  preparatory  grounds  of  speech,  by 
their  certain  forms  got  into  memory,  they  were  led  to  the 
praxis  thereof  in  some  chosen  short  book  lessoned  thor- 
oughly to  them,  they  might  then  forthwith  proceed  to  learn 
the  substance  of  good  things,  and  arts  in  due  order,  which 
would  bring  the  whole  language  quickly  into  their  power. 
This  I  take  to  be  the  most  rational  and  most  profitable  way 
of  learning  languages,  and  whereby  we  may  best  hope  to 
give  account  to  God  of  our  youth  spent  herein ;  and  for  the 
usual  method  of  teaching  arts,  I  deem  it  to  be  an  old  error 
of  universities,  not  yet  well  recovered  from  the  scholastic 
grossness  of  barbarous  ages,  that  instead  of  beginning  with 
arts  most  easy,  (and  those  be  such  as  are  most  obvious  to 
the  sense,)  they  present  their  young  unmatriculated  novices, 
at  first  coming,  with  the  most  intellective  abstractions  of 
logic  and  metaphysics :  so  that  they  having  but  newly  left 
those  grammatic  flats  and  shallows,  where  they  stuck  un- 
reasonably to  learn  a  few  words  with  lamentable  construc- 
tion, and  now  on  the  sudden  transported  under  another 
climate,  to  be  tossed  and  turmoiled  with  their  unballasted 
wits,  in  fathomless  and  unquiet  deeps  of  controversy,  do  for 
the  most  part  grow  into  hatred  and  contempt  of  learning, 
mocked  and  deluded  all  this  while  with  ragged  notions  and 


244  JOHN  MILTON 

babblements,  while  they  expected  worthy  and  delightful 
knowledge;  till  poverty  or  youthful  years  call  them  impor- 
tunately their  several  ways,  and  hasten  them,  with  the  sway 
of  friends,  either  to  an  ambitious  and  mercenary,  or  igno- 
rantly  zealous  divinity:  some  allured  to  the  trade  of  law, 
grounding  their  purposes  not  on  the  prudent  and  heavenly 
contemplation  of  justice  and  equity,  which  was  never  taught 
them,  but  on  the  promising  and  pleasing  thoughts  of 
litigious  terms,  fat  contentions,  and  flowing  fees.  Others 
betake  them  to  state  affairs,  with  souls  so  unprincipled  in 
virtue,  and  true  generous  breeding,  that  flattery  and  court 
shifts,  and  tyrannous  aphorisms,  appear  to  them  the  high- 
est points  of  wisdom;  instilling  their  barren  hearts  with  a 
conscientious  slavery,  if,  as  I  rather  think,  it  be  not  feigned. 
Others,  lastly,  of  a  more  delicious  and  airy  spirit,  retire 
themselves,  knowing  no  better,  to  the  enjoyments  of  ease 
and  luxury,  living  out  their  days  in  feast  and  jollity ;  which, 
indeed,  is  the  wisest  and  the  safest  course  of  all  these,  un- 
less they  were  with  more  integrity  undertaken.  And  these 
are  the  errors,  and  these  are  the  fruits  of  misspending  our 
prime  youth  at  the  schools  and  universities,  as  we  do,  either 
in  learning  mere  words,  or  such  things  chiefly  as  were  better 
unlearned. 

I  shall  detain  you  now  no  longer  in  the  demonstration  of 
what  we  should  not  do,  but  straight  conduct  you  to  a  hill- 
side, where  I  will  point  you  out  the  right  path  of  a  virtuous 
and  noble  education ;  laborious,  xindeed,  at  the  first  ascent, 
but  else  so  smooth,  so  green,  so  full  of  goodly  prospect, 
and  melodious  sounds  on  every  side,  that  the  harp  of 
Orpheus  was  not  more  charming.  I  doubt  not  but  ye  shall 
have  more  ado  to  drive  our  dullest  and  laziest  youth,  our 
stocks  and  stubs,  from  the  infinite  desire  of  such  a  happy 
nurture,  than  we  have  now  to  hale  and  drag  our  choicest 
and  hopefullest  wits  to  that  asinine  feast  of  sow-thistles 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  245 

and  brambles,  which  is  commonly  set  before  them,  as  all  the 
food  and  entertainment  of  their  tenderest  and  most  docible 
age.  I  call  therefore  a  complete  and  generous  education, 
that  which  fits  a  man  to  perform  justly,  skilfully,  and  mag- 
nanimously, all  the  offices  both  private  and  public,  of  peace 
and  war.  And  how  all  this  may  be  done  between  twelve, 
and  one-and-twenty,  (less  time  than  is  now  bestowed  in 
pure  trifling  at  grammar  and  sophistry),  is  to  be  thus 
ordered. 

First,  To  find  out  a  spacious  house,  and  ground  about  it, 
fit  for  an  academy,  and  big  enough  to  lodge  a  hundred  and 
fifty  persons,  whereof  twenty,  or  thereabout,  may  be  attend- 
ants, all  under  the  government  of  pne,  who  shall  be  thought 
of  desert  sufficient,  and  ability  either  to  do  all,  or  wisely  to 
direct  and  oversee  it  done.  This  place  should  be  at  once  both 
school  and  university,  not  needing  a  remove  to  any  other 
house  of  scholarship,  except  it  be  some  peculiar  college  of 
law,  or  physic,  where  they  mean  to  be  a  practitioner ;  but 
as  for  those  general  studies,  which  take  up  all  our  time  from 
Lilly  to  the  commencing,  as  they  term  it,  Master  of  Art,  it 
should  be  absolute.  After  this  pattern  as  many  edifices  may 
be  converted  to  this  use,  as  shall  be  needful  in  every  city 
throughout  this  land,  which  would  tend  much  to  the  in- 
crease of  learning  and  civility  everywhere.  This  number, 
less  or  more,  thus  collected  to  the  convenience  of  a  foot 
company,  or  interchangeably  two  troops  of  cavalry,  should 
divide  their  day's  work  into  three  parts,  as  it  lies  orderly ; 
their  studies,  their  exercise,  and  their  diet. 

For  their  studies :  First,  they  should  begin  with  the  chief 
and  necessary  rules  of  some  good  grammar,  either  that  now 
used,  or  any  better;  and  while  this  is  doing,  their  speech  is 
to  be  fashioned  to  a  distinct  and  clear  pronunciation,  as  near 
as  may  be  to  the  Italian,  especially  in  vowels :  for  we  Eng- 
lishmen being  far  northerly,  do  not  open  our  mouths  in  the 


246  JOHN  MILTON 

cold  air,  wide  enough  to  grace  a  southern  tongue;  but  are 
observed  by  all  other  nations  to  speak  exceeding  close 
and  inward :  so  that  to  smatter  Latin  with  an  English  mouth, 
is  as  ill  a  hearing  as  Law-French.  Next,  to  make  them  ex- 
pert in  the  usefullest  points  of  grammar,  and  withal  to  sea- 
son them,  and  win  them  early  to  the  love  of  virtue  and  true 
labor,  ere  any  flattering  seducement,  or  vain  principle  seize 
them  wondering,  some  easy  and  delightful  book  of  educa- 
tion should  be  read  to  them ;  whereof  the  Greeks  have  store, 
as  Cebes,  Plutarch,  and  other  Socratic  discourses.  But  in 
Latin,  we  have  none  of  classic  authority  extant,  except  the 
two  or  three  first  books  of  Quintilian,  and  some  select  pieces 
elsewhere.  But  here  the  main  skill  and  ground-work  will 
be  to  temper  them  such  lectures  and  explanations  upon 
every  opportunity,  as  may  lead  and  draw  them  in  willing 
obedience,  enflamed  with  a  study  of  learning,  and  the  ad- 
miration of  virtue;  stirred  up  with  high  hopes  of  living  to 
be  brave  men,  and  worthy  patriots,  dear  to  God,  and  famous 
to  all  ages,  that  they  may  despise  and  scorn  all  their  child- 
ish, and  ill-taught  qualities,  to  delight  in  manly  and  liberal 
exercises;  which  he  who  hath  the  art,  and  proper  eloquence 
to  catch  them  with,  what  with  mild  and  effectual  persua- 
sions, and  what  with  the  intimation  of  some  fear,  if  need  be, 
but  chiefly  by  his  own  example,  might  in  a  short  space  gain 
them  to  an  incredible  diligence  and  courage;  infusing  into 
their  young  breasts  such  an  ingenuous  and  noble  ardor,  as 
would  not  fail  to  make  many  of  them  renowned  and  match- 
less men.  At  the  same  time,  some  other  hour  of  the  day, 
might  be  taught  them  the  rules  of  arithmetic,  and  soon  after 
the  elements  of  geometry,  even  playing,  as  the  old  manner 
was.  After  evening  repast  till  bedtime,  their  thoughts  will 
be  best  taken  up  in  the  easy  grounds  of  religion,  and  the 
story  of  Scripture.  The  next  step  would  be  to  the  authors 
on  agriculture,  Cato,  Varro,  and  Columella,  for  the  matter 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  247 

is  most  easy,  and  if  the  language  be  difficult,  so  much  the 
better,  it  is  not  a  difficulty  above  their  years.  And  here 
will  be  an  occasion  of  inciting  and  enabling  them  hereafter 
to  improve  the  tillage  of  their  country,  to  recover  the  bad 
soil,  and  to  remedy  the  waste  that  is  made  of  good;  for 
this  is  one  of  Hercules'  praises.  Ere  half  these  authors  be 
read,  (which  will  soon  be  with  plying  hard  and  daily),  they 
cannot  choose  but  be  masters  of  any  ordinary  prose.  So 
that  it  will  be  then  seasonable  for  them  to  learn  in  any 
modern  author  the  use  of  the  globes,  and  all  the  maps ;  first, 
with  the  old  names,  and  then  with  the  new:  or  they  might 
be  then  capable  to  read  any  compendious  method  of  natural 
philosophy ;  and  at  the  same  time  might  be  entering  into  the 
Greek  tongue,  after  the  same  manner  as  was  prescribed  in 
the  Latin ;  whereby  the  difficulties  of  grammar  being  soon 
overcome,  all  the  historical  physiology  of  Aristotle  and 
Theophrastus  are  open  before  them,  and  as  I  may  say,  under 
contribution.  The  like  access  will  be  to  Vitruvius,  to  Sen- 
eca's natural  questions,  to  Mela,  Celsus,  Pliny,  or  Solinus. 
And  having  thus  passed  the  principles  of  arithmetic,  geom- 
etry, astronomy,  and  geography,  with  a  general  compact 
of  physics,  they  may  descend  in  mathematics  to  the  instru- 
mental science  of  trigonometry,  and  from  thence  to  forti- 
fication, architecture,  enginery  or  navigation.  And  in  nat- 
ural philosophy  they  may  proceed  leisurely  from  the 
history  of  meteors,  minerals,  plants,  and  living  creatures,  as 
far  as  anatomy.  Then  also  in  course  might  be  read  to  them 
out  of  some  not  tedious  writer  the  institution  of  physic ;  that 
they  may  know  the  tempers,  the  humors,  the  seasons,  and 
how  to  manage  a  crudity:  which  he  who  can  wisely  and 
timely  do,  is  not  only  a  great  physician  to  himself,  and  to  his 
friends,  but  also  may  at  some  time  or  other  save  an  army  by 
this  frugal  and  expenseless  means  only;  and  not  let  the 
healthy  and  stout  bodies  of  young  men  rot  away  under  him 


248  JOHN  MILTON 

for  want  of  this  discipline;  which  is  a  great  pity,  and  no 
less  a  shame  to  the  commander.  To  set  forward  all  these 
proceedings  in  nature  and  mathematics,  what  hinders,  but 
that  they  may  procure,  as  oft  as  shall  be  needful,  the  help- 
ful experiences  of  hunters,  fowlers,  fishermen,  shepherds, 
gardeners,  apothecaries ;  and  in  the  other  sciences,  archi- 
tects, engineers,  mariners,  anatomists;  who  doubtless  will 
be  ready,  some  for  reward,  and  some  to  favor  such  a  hope- 
ful seminary?  And  this  will  give  them  such  a  real  tincture 
of  natural  knowledge,  as  they  shall  never  forget,  but  daily 
augment  with  delight.  Then  also  those  poets  which  are 
now  counted  most  hard,  will  be  both  facile  and  pleasant, 
Orpheus,  Hesiod,  Theocritus,  Aratus,  Nicander,  Oppian, 
Dionysius,  and  in  Latin,  Lucretius,  Manilius  and  the  rural 
part  of  Virgil. 

By  this  time,  years  and  good  general  precepts  will  have 
furnished  them  more  distinctly  with  that  act  of  reason  which 
in  ethics  is  called  Proairesis:  that  they  may  with  some  judg- 
ment contemplate  upon  moral  good  and  evil.  Then  will  be 
required  a  special  reinforcement  of  constant  and  sound  in- 
doctrinating, to  set  them  right  and  firm,  instructing  them 
more  amply  in  the  knowledge  of  virtue,  and  the  hatred  of 
vice :  while  their  young  and  pliant  affections  are  led  through 
all  the  moral  works  of  Plato,  Xenophon,  Cicero,  Plutarch, 
Laertius,  and  those  Locrian  remnants;  but  still  to  be  re- 
duced in  their  nightward  studies,  wherewith  they  close  the 
day's  work,  under  the  determinate  sentence  of  David  or 
Solomon,  or  the  evangelists  and  apostolic  Scriptures.  Being 
perfect  in  the  knowledge  of  personal  duty,  they  may  then 
begin  the  study  of  economics :  and  either  now,  or  before 
this,  they  may  have  easily  learned,  at  any  odd  hour,  the  Ital- 
ian tongue.  And  soon  after,  but  with  wariness  and  good 
antidote,  it  would  be  wholesome  enough  to  let  them  taste 
some  choice  comedies,  Greek,  Latin,  or  Italian:  those  trag- 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  249 

edies  also  that  treat  of  household  matters,  as  Trachiniae, 
Alcestis,  and  the  like.  The  next  remove  must  be  to  the 
study  of  politics ;  to  know  the  beginning,  end,  and  reasons  of 
political  societies ;  that  they  may  not  in  a  dangerous  fit  of  the 
commonwealth  be  such  poor,  shaken,  uncertain  reeds,  of 
such  a  tottering  conscience  as  many  of  our  great  counsel- 
ors have  lately  shown  themselves,  but  steadfast  pillars  of 
the  state.  After  this,  they  are  to  dive  into  the  grounds 
of  law,  and  legal  justice;  delivered  first,  and  with  best  war- 
rant, by  Moses;  and  as  far  as  human  prudence  can  be 
trusted,  in  those  extolled  remains  of  Grecian  lawgivers, 
Lycurgus,  Solon,  Zaleucus,  Charondas,  and  thence  to  all 
the  Roman  edicts  and  tables,  with  their  Justinian ;  and  so 
down  to  the  Saxon  and  common  laws  of  England,  and  the 
statutes.  Sundays  also,  and  every  evening,  may  be  now  un- 
derstandingly  spent  in  the  highest  matters  of  theology,  and 
church  history,  ancient  and  modern :  and  ere  this  time  the 
Hebrew  tongue  at  a  set  hour  might  have  been  gained,  that 
the  Scriptures  may  be  now  read  in  their  own  original; 
whereto  it  would  be  no  impossibility  to  add  the  Chaldee,  and 
the  Syrian  dialect.  When  all  these  employments  are  well 
conquered,  then  will  the  choice  histories,  heroic  poems,  and 
Attic  tragedies  of  stateliest  and  most  regal  argument,  with 
all  the  famous  political  orations,  offer  themselves ;  which,  if 
they  were  not  only  read,  but  some  of  them  got  by  memory, 
and  solemnly  pronounced  with  right  accent  and  grace,  as 
might  be  taught,  would  endue  them  even  with  the  spirit  and 
vigor  of  Demosthenes  or  Cicero,  Euripides  or  Sophocles. 
And  now,  lastly,  will  be  the  time  to  read  with  them  those 
organic  arts  which  enable  men  to  discourse  and  write  per- 
spicuously, elegantly,  and  according  to  the  fitted  style  of 
lofty,  mean,  or  lowly.  Logic  therefore,  so  much  as  is  use- 
ful, is  to  be  referred  to  this  due  place,  with  all  her  well- 
couched  heads  and  topics,  until  it  be  time  to  open  her  con- 


250  JOHN  MILTON 

tracted  palm,  into  a  graceful  and  ornate  rhetoric,  taught  out 
of  the  rule  of  Plato,  Aristotle,  Phalerius,  Cicero,  Hermo- 
genes,  Longinus.  To  which  poetry  would  be  made  subse- 
quent, or,  indeed,  rather  precedent,  as  being  less  subtile  and 
fine,  but  more  simple,  sensuous,  and  passionate.  I  mean 
not  here  the  prosody  of  a  verse,  which  they  could  not  but 
have  hit  on  before  among  the  rudiments  of  grammer;  but 
that  sublime  art  which  in  Aristotle's  poetics,  in  Horace, 
and  the  Italian  commentaries  of  Castelvetro,  Tasso,  Maz- 
zoni,  and  others,  teaches  what  the  laws  are  of  a  true  epic 
poem,  what  of  a  dramatic,  what  of  a  lyric,  what  decorum 
is,  which  is  the  grand  master-piece  to  observe.  This  would 
make  them  soon  perceive  what  despicable  creatures  our 
common  rhymers  and  play  writers  be,  and  show  them  what 
religious,  what  glorious  and  magnificent  use  might  be  made 
of  poetry,  both  in  divine  and  human  things.  From  hence, 
and  not  till  now,  will  be  the  right  season  of  forming  them  to 
be  able  writers  and  composers  in  every  excellent  matter, 
when  they  shall  be  thus  fraught  with  an  universal  insight 
into  things.  Or  whether  they  be  to  speak  in  parliament 
or  council,  honor  and  attention  would  be  waiting  on  their 
lips.  There  would  then  also  appear  in  pulpits  other  visages, 
other  gestures,  and  stuff  otherwise  wrought,  than  what  we 
now  sit  under,  oft-times  to  as  great  a  trial  of  our  patience, 
as  any  other  that  they  preach  to  us.  These  are  the  studies 
wherein  our  noble  and  our  gentle  youth  ought  to  bestow 
their  time  in  a  disciplinary  way,  from  twelve  to  one-and- 
twenty ;  unless  they  rely  more  upon  their  ancestors  dead, 
than  upon  themselves  living.  In  which  methodical  course 
it  is  so  supposed  they  must  proceed  by  the  steady  pace  of 
learning  onward,  as  at  convenient  times,  for  memory's  sake, 
to  retire  back  into  the  middle  ward,  and  sometimes  into  the 
rear  of  what  they  have  been  taught,  until  they  have  con- 
firmed and  solidly  united  the  whole  body  of  their  perfected 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  251 

knowledge,  like  the  last  embattling  of  a  Roman  legion.  Now 
will  be  worth  the  seeing  what  exercises  and  recreations  may 
best  agree  and  become  these  studies. 

The  course  of  study  hitherto  briefly  described,  is,  what 
I  can  guess  by  reading,  likest  to  those  ancient  and  famous 
schools  of  Pythagoras,  Plato,  Isocrates,  Aristotle,  and  such 
others,  out  of  which  were  bred  up  such  a  number  of  re- 
nowned philosophers,  orators,  historians,  poets  and  princes, 
all  over  Greece,  Italy,  and  Asia,  besides  the  flourishing  stud- 
ies of  Cyrene  and  Alexandria.  But  herein  it  shall  exceed 
them,  and  supply  a  defect  as  great  as  that  which  Plato  noted 
in  the  commonwealth  of  Sparta;  whereas  that  city  trained 
up  their  youth  most  for  war,  and  these  in  their  academies 
and  lyceum,  all  for  the  gown ;  this  institution  of  breeding 
which  I  here  delineate,  shall  be  equally  good,  both  for 
peace  and  war ;  therefore  about  an  hour  and  a  half  ere  they 
eat  at  noon,  should  be  allowed  them  for  exercise,  and  due  rest 
afterwards :  but  the  time  for  this  may  be  enlarged  at 
pleasure,  according  as  their  rising  in  the  morning  shall  be 
early.  The  exercise  which  I  commend  first,  is  the  exact  use 
of  their  weapon,  to  guard  and  to  strike  safely  with  edge  or 
point;  this  will  keep  them  healthy,  nimble,  strong,  and  well 
in  breath ;  is  also  the  likeliest  means  to  make  them  grow 
large  and  tall,  and  to  inspire  them  with  a  gallant  and  fear- 
less courage,  which  being  tempered  with  seasonable  lectures 
and  precepts  to  them  of  true  fortitude  and  patience,  will  turn 
into  a  native  and  heroic  valor,  and  make  them  hate  the  cow- 
ardice of  doing  wrong.  They  must  be  also  practiced  in  all 
the  locks  and  gripes  of  wrestling,  wherein  Englishmen  were 
wont  to  excel,  as  need  may  often  be  in  fight  to  tug  or  grap- 
ple, and  to  close.  And  this,  perhaps,  will  be  enough,  where- 
in to  prove  and  heat  their  single  strength.  The  interim  of 
unsweating  themselves  regularly,  and  convenient  rest  be- 
fore meat,  may  both  with  profit  and  delight  be  taken  up 


252  JOHN  MILTON 

in  recreating  and  composing  their  travailed  spirits,  with  the 
solemn  and  divine  harmonies  of  music  heard  or  learnt; 
either  while  the  skilful  organist  plies  his  grave  and  fancied 
descants  in  lofty  fugues,  or  the  whole  symphony  with  artful 
and  unimaginable  touches  adorn  and  grace  the  well-studied 
chords  of  some  choice  composer ;  sometimes  the  lute,  or  soft 
organ-stop,  waiting  on  elegant  voices,  either  to  religious, 
martial,  or  civil  ditties ;  which,  if  wise  men  and  prophets  be 
not  extremely  out,  have  a  great  power  over  dispositions  and 
manners;  to  smooth  and  make  them  gentle  from  rustic 
harshness  and  distempered  passions.  The  like  also  would 
not  be  unexpedient  after  meat,  to  assist  and  cherish  nature 
in  her  first  concoction,  and  send  their  minds  back  to  study 
in  good  tune  and  satisfaction ;  where  having  followed  it 
close  under  vigilant  eyes,  till  about  two  hours  before  supper, 
they  are  by  a  sudden  alarum  or  watch-word,  to  be  called  out 
to  their  military  motions  under  sky  or  covert,  according  to 
the  season,  as  was  the  Roman  wont;  first  on  foot,  then,  as 
their  age  permits,  on  horseback,  to  all  the  art  of  cavalry: 
that,  having  in  sport,  but  with  much  exactness,  and  daily 
muster,  served  out  the  rudiments  of  their  soldiership  in  all 
the  skill  of  embattling,  marching,  encamping,  fortifying, 
besieging  and  battering,  with  all  the  helps  of  ancient  and 
modern  stratagems,  tactics  and  warlike  maxims,  they  may 
as  it  were  out  of  a  long  war  come  forth  renowned  and  per- 
fect commanders  in  the  service  of  their  country.  They 
would  not  then,  if  they  were  trusted  with  fair  and  hopeful 
armies,  suffer  them,  for  want  of  just  and  wise  discipline,  to 
shed  away  from  about  them  like  sick  feathers,  though  they 
be  never  so  oft  supplied ;  they  would  not  suffer  their  empty 
and  unrecruitable  colonels  of  twenty  men  in  a  company,  to 
quaff  out,  or  convey  into  secret  hoards,  the  wages  of  a  delu- 
sive list,  and  a  miserable  remnant:  yet  in  the  meanwhile  to 
be  over-mastered  with  a  score  or  two  of  drunkards,  the  only 


SELECTION  FROM  MILTON  253 

soldiery  left  about  them,  or  else  to  comply  with  all  rapines 
and  violences.  No,  certainly,  if  they  knew  aught  of  that 
knowledge  which  belongs  to  good  men  or  good  governors, 
they  would  not  suffer  these  things.  But  to  return  to  our  own 
institute,  besides  these  constant  exercises  at  home,  there  is 
another  opportunity  of  gaining  experience,  to  be  won  from 
pleasure  itself  abroad.  In  those  vernal  seasons  of  the  year, 
when  the  air  is  calm  and  pleasant,  it  were  an  injury  and  sul- 
lenness  against  nature  not  to  go  out  and  see  her  riches, 
and  partake  in  her  rejoicing  with  heaven  and  earth.  I 
should  not  therefore  be  a  persuader  to  them  of  studying 
much  then,  after  two  or  three  years  that  they  have  well  laid 
their  grounds,  but  to  ride  out  in  companies  with  prudent 
and  staid  guides,  to  all  the  quarters  of  the  land;  learning 
and  observing  all  places  of  strength,  all  commodities  of 
building  and  of  soil,  for  towns  and  tillage,  harbors  and 
ports  for  trade.  Sometimes  taking  sea  as  far  as  to  our 
navy,  to  learn  there  also  what  they  can  in  the  practical 
knowledge  of  sailing,  and  of  seafight.  These  ways  would 
try  all  their  peculiar  gifts  of  nature,  and  if  there  were  any 
secret  excellence  among  them,  would  fetch  it  out,  and  give 
it  fair  opportunities  to  advance  itself  by,  which  could  not 
but  mightily  redound  to  the  good  of  this  nation,  and  bring 
into  fashion  again  those  old  admired  virtues  and  excellen- 
cies, with  far  more  advantage,  now  in  this  purity  of  Chris- 
tian knowledge.  Nor  shall  we  then  need  the  Monsieurs  of 
Paris  to  take  our  hopeful  youth  into  their  slight  and  prodi- 
gal custodies,  and  send  them  over  back  again  transformed 
into  mimics,  apes  and  kick-shoes.  But  if  they  desire  to  see 
other  countries  at  three  or  four-and-twenty  years  of  age,  not 
to  learn  principles,  but  to  enlarge  experience,  and  make  wise 
observations,  they  will  by  that  time  be  such  as  shall  deserve 
the  regard  and  honor  of  all  men  where  they  pass,  and  the 
society  and  friendship  of  those  in  all  places  who  are  best 


254  JOHN  MILTON 

and  most  eminent.  And  perhaps  then  other  nations  will  be 
glad  to  visit  us  for  their  breeding,  or  else  to  imitate  us  in 
their  own  country. 

Now,  lastly,  for  their  diet,  there  cannot  be  much  to  say, 
save  only  that  it  would  be  best  in  the  same  house ;  for  much 
time  else  would  be  lost  abroad,  and  many  ill  habits  got ; 
and  that  it  should  be  plain,  healthful  and  moderate,  I  sup- 
pose is  out  of  controversy.  Thus,  Mr.  Hartlib,  you  have  a 
general  view  in  writing,  as  your  desire  was,  of  that  which 
at  several  times  I  had  discoursed  with  you  concerning  the 
best  and  noblest  way  of  education;  not  beginning,  as  some 
have  done,  from  the  cradle,  which  yet  might  be  worth  many 
considerations,  if  brevity  had  not  been  my  scope.  Many 
other  circumstances  also  I  could  have  mentioned,  but  this 
to  such  as  have  the  worth  in  them  to  make  trial,  for  light 
and  direction,  may  be  enough.  Only,  I  believe  that  this  is 
not  a  bow  for  every  man  to  shoot  in,  that  counts  himself  a 
teacher,  but  will  require  sinews  almost  equal  to  those  which 
Homer  gave  Ulysses;  yet  I  am  withal  persuaded,  that  it 
may  prove  much  more  easy  in  the  essay,  than  it  now  seems 
at  distance,  and  much  more  illustrious :  howbeit,  not  more 
difficult  than  I  imagine,  and  that  imagination  presents  me 
with  nothing  but  very  happy  and  very  possible,  according 
to  best  wishes ;  if  God  hath  so  decreed,  and  this  age  hath 
spirit  and  capacity  enough  to  apprehend. 


XVII.    JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

John  Amos  Comenius,  one  of  the  most  influential  of 
modern  educators,  was  born  at  Komna  in  Moravia,  March 
28,  1592.  His  family  belonged  to  the  earnest  Protestant 
organization  known  as  Moravian  Brethren,  in  which  he 
subsequently  became  a  distinguished  preacher  and  bishop. 
In  youth  he  displayed  an  eager  thirst  for  knowledge ;  but 
his  experience  in  the  schools  of  the  time  opened  his  eyes  to 
many  defects  in  method  and  discipline,  which  later  in  life 
he  earnestly  endeavored  to  remedy.  After  studying  at  the 
College  of  Herborn  and  the  University  of  Heidelberg,  he 
took  charge,  in  1616,  of  the  Moravian  congregation  at  Ful- 
neck,  and  in  connection  with  his  pastoral  duties  assumed 
direction  of  the  recently  established  school  there.  But  the 
busy  and  happy  life  which  he  had  thus  entered  upon,  was 
disturbed  by  the  outbreak  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War.  In 
1621  Fulneck  was  sacked  by  the  Spaniards.  Comenius  lost 
all  his  property,  including  his  library ;  and  owing  to  the 
intolerance  of  the  Austrian  government,  he  was  compelled 
at  length  to  seek  refuge  at  Lissa  in  Poland. 

At  Lissa  he  was  placed  at  the  head  of  the  Moravian 
gymnasium,  and  he  turned  his  attention  anew  to  the  theory 
and  practice  of  education.  He  perused  with  deep  interest 
the  works  of  Ratich  and  Bacon,  but  observed  "  here  and 
there,"  to  use  his  own  words,  "  some  defects  and  gaps. 
Therefore,  after  many  workings  and  tossings  of 
my  thoughts,  by  reducing  everything  to  the  immovable  law 

255 


256  JOHN  AMOS  COMENWS 

of  nature,  I  lighted  upon  my  '  Great  Didactic/  which  shows 
the  art  of  readily  and  solidly  teaching  all  men  all  things." 
This  work,  which  remained  in  manuscript  till  1649,  IB  one 
of  the  greatest  of  all  books  on  educational  theory  and 
method;  and  though,  after  a  temporary  vogue,  it  was  neg- 
lected for  some  two  hundred  years,  its  principles  in  recent 
decades  have  done  much  to  reform  the  schools  of  Chris- 
tendom. 

Comenius  next  set  about  reforming  the  teaching  of  Latin, 
which  was  then  carried  on  in  the  most  unscientific  manner. 
Schools  were  little  short  of  a  terror  to  boys ;  instruction  in 
unintelligible  Latin  grammars  was  accompanied  with  an 
inconsiderate  and  sometimes  cruel  use  of  the  rod.  Comen- 
ius emphasized  the  teaching  of  things  as  well  as  of  rvords. 
As  he  states  it  in  his  "  Gate  of  Tongues  Unlocked  "  (Janua 
Linguarum  Reserata),  which  was  published  in  1631,  "  My 
fundamental  principle  —  an  irrefragable  law  of  didactics  — 
is  that  the  understanding  and  the  tongue  should  advance  in 
parallel  lines  always."  This  book  had  an  immense  success, 
and  was  translated  into  no  fewer  than  a  dozen  European 
languages. 

The  fame  of  Comenius  was  now  well  established  through- 
out Europe.  In  1641  he  was  invited  to  England  to  reform 
education  and  to  establish  a  "  universal  college."  But  the 
time  was  not  propitious.  The  excitement  and  uncertainty 
connected  with  the  approaching  civil  war  threw  all  his 
plans  into  confusion.  At  this  juncture  he  accepted  an  in- 
vitation to  visit  Sweden.  There  he  elaborately  discussed 
with  Oxenstiern,  "  the  eagle  of  the  North,"  his  great  edu- 
cational schemes.  His  cherished  pansophic  plans  were  not 
encouraged ;  and  as  a  result  of  this  conference,  he  withdrew 
to  Elbing  in  Prussia  and  devoted  the  next  four  years  to  the 
preparation  of  his  "  Latest  Method  with  Languages " 
(Methodus  Linguarum  Novissima),  in  which  he  laid  down 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  257 

the  principle  that  words  and  things  should  be  learned  to- 
gether ;  that  theory  should  not  be  divorced  from  practice ; 
and  that  study  should  advance  by  easy  gradations.  This 
work  appeared  in  1648. 

In  1650  Comenius  established  a  model  school  at  Patak 
in  Hungary,  where  he  produced  his  "  World  Illustrated  " 
(Orbis  Pictus),  the  most  famous  of  all  his  writings.  This 
work  contains,  as  stated  on  the  title-page,  "  the  pictures  and 
names  of  all  the  principal  things  in  the  world,  and  of  all  the 
principal  occupations  of  man."  It  was  designed  to  lay  a 
solid  foundation  of  knowledge  in  accurate  sense-percep- 
tion. "  The  foundation  of  all  knowledge,"  as  Comenius  ex- 
plained, "  consists  in  representing  clearly  to  the  senses  sen- 
sible objects,  so  that  they  can  be  apprehended  easily." 

In  1654  Comenius  returned  to  Lissa,  where  one  more  mis- 
fortune awaited  him.  Two  years  later  the  town  was  plun- 
dered by  the  Poles,  and  he  lost  his  house,  books,  and  above 
all,  his  manuscripts.  :'  This  loss,"  he  said,  "  I  shall  cease 
to  lament  only  when  I  cease  to  breathe."  After  several 
months'  wandering  in  Germany,  he  was  offered  an  asylum 
at  Amsterdam  by  Laurence  de  Geer.  Here  he  spent  the  re- 
maining years  of  his  life,  devoting  himself  to  teaching  as  a 
means  of  support,  and  to  the  promulgation  and  defense  of 
his  educational  views.  His  last  days  were  somewhat  imbit- 
tered  by  envious  attacks  upon  his  character  and  methods, 
but  in  all  his  trials  he  exhibited  a  meek,  forbearing  Chris- 
tian spirit.  He  died  in  1671  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty 
years. 

The  following  selection  is  taken  from  Keatinge's  transla- 
tion of  "  The  Great  Didactic."  The  opening  paragraphs 
present  important  or  fundamental  views  from  the  earlier 
chapters.  The  sixteenth  chapter  is  given  in  full  for  two 
reasons:  I.  It  exhibits  the  process,  not  always  convincing 
perhaps,  by  which  the  great  Moravian  arrives  at  his  con- 

PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 17 


258  JOHN  AMOS  COMENWS 

elusions ;  and  2,  The  principles  he  lays  down  as  the  founda- 
tion upon  which  the  imposing  superstructure  of  his  edu- 
cational system  is  based. 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS. 

THE   GREAT    DIDACTIC. 

1.  The  seeds  of  knowledge,  of  virtue,  and  of  piety  are 
naturally  implanted  in  us ;  but  the  actual  knowledge,  virtue, 
and  piety  are  not  so  given.     These  must  be  acquired  by 
prayer,  by  education,  and  by  action.    He  gave  no  bad  defini- 
tion who  said  that  man  was  a  "  teachable  animal."    And  in- 
deed it  is  only  by  a  proper  education  that  he  can  become  a 
man. 

2.  All  who  have  been  born  to  man's  estate  have  been 
born  with  the  same  end  in  view,  namely,  that  they  may  be 
men,  that  is  to  say,  rational  creatures,  the  lords  of  other 
creatures,  and  the  images  of  their  Creator.     All,  therefore, 
must  be  brought  on  to  a  point  at  which,  being  properly  im- 
bued with  wisdom,  virtue,  and  piety,  they  may  usefully  em- 
ploy the  present  life  and  be  worthily  prepared  for  that  to 
come.     God  himself  has  frequently  asserted  that  with  him 
there  is  no  respect  of  persons,  so  that  if,  while  we  admit 
some  to  the  culture  of  the  intellect,  we  exclude  others,  we 
commit  an  injury  not  only  against  those  who  share  the  same 
nature  as  ourselves,  but  against  God  himself,  who  wishes  to 
be  acknowledged,  to  be  loved,  and  to  be  praised  by  all  upon 
whom  he  has   impressed  his   image.     In  this   respect  the 
fervor  of  all  men  will  increase  in  proportion  to  the  flame  of 
knowledge  that  has  been  kindled.    For  our  love  is  in  direct 
ratio  to  our  knowledge.  • 

3.  Nor  can  any  sufficient  reason  be  given  why  the  weaker 
sex  (to  give  a  word  of  advice  on  this  point  in  particular) 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS  259 

should  be  altogether  excluded  from  the  pursuit  of  knowl- 
edge, whether  in  Latin  or  in  their  mother-tongue.  They 
also  are  formed  in  the  image  of  God,  and  share  in  his  grace 
and  in  the  kingdom  of  the  world  to  come.  They  are  en- 
dowed with  equal  sharpness  of  mind  and  capacity  for 
knowledge  (often  with  more  than  the  opposite  sex),  and 
they  are  able  to  attain  the  highest  positions,  since  they  have 
often  been  called  by  God  himself  to  rule  over  nations,  to  give 
sound  advice  to  kings  and  princes,  to  the  study  of  medicine 
and  of  other  things  which  benefit  the  human  race,  even  to 
the  office  of  prophesying  and  of  inveighing  against  priests 
and  bishops.  Why,  therefore,  should  we  admit  them  to 
the  alphabet,  and  afterwards  drive  them  away  from  books? 
Do  we  fear  their  folly  ?  The  more  we  occupy  their  thoughts, 
so  much  the  less  will  the  folly  that  arises  from  emptiness  of 
mind  find  a  place. 

4.  Things  themselves,  as  far  as  they  concern  us,  can  be 
divided  into  three  classes  only:     i,  Objects  that  we  can  ob- 
serve, such  as  the  heavens,  the  earth,  and  all  that  is  in  them ; 
2,  Objects  that  we  can  imitate,  such  as  the  marvelous  or- 
der which  pervades  all  things,  and  which  man  ought  to 
imitate  in  his  actions;  3,  Objects  that  we  can  enjoy,  such  as 
the  grace  of  God  and  his  manifold  blessing  here  and  for 
eternity.      If   man    is    to    acquit    himself   creditably   when 
brought  into  contact  with  this  order  of  nature,  he  must  be 
trained  to  know  the  things  that  are  spread  out  for  his  ob- 
servation in  this  marvelous  amphitheatre,  to  do  the  things 
that  it  is  right  for  him  to  do,  and  finally,  to  enjoy  those 
things  of  which  the  most  benign  Creator,  treating  him  as 
a  guest  in  his  house,  has  with  liberal  hand  given  him  the 
fruition. 

5.  I  call  a  school  that  fulfils  its  function  perfectly,  one 
which  is  a  true  forging-place  of  men ;  where  the  minds  of 
those  who  learn  are  illuminated  by  the  light  of  wisdom,  so 


260  JOHN  AMOS  COM  EN  I  US 

t 

as  to  penetrate  with  ease  all  that  is  manifest  and  all  that 
is  secret,  where  the  emotions  and  the  desires  are  brought 
into  harmony  with  virtue,  and  where  the  heart  is  filled 
with  and  permeated  by  divine  love,  so  that  all  who  are 
handed  over  to  Christian  schools  to  be  imbued  with  true 
wisdom,  may  be  taught  to  live  a  heavenly  life  on  earth ;  in  a 
word,  where  all  men  are  taught  all  things  thoroughly. 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

The  universal  requirements  of  teaching  and  of  learning; 
that  is  to  say,  a  method  of  teaching  and  of  learning  zvith 
such  certainty  that  the  desired  result  must  of  necessity 
follow. 

1.  Exceptionally  fine  is  that  comparison  made  by  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  the  gospel,  "  So  is  the  kingdom  of 
God,  as  if  a  man  should  cast  seed  upon  the  earth ;  and 
should  sleep  and  rise  night  and  day,  and  the  seed  should 
spring  up  and  grow,  he  knoweth  not  how.    The  earth  bear- 
eth  fruit  of  herself;  first  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  then  the 
full  corn  in  the  ear.     But  when  the  fruit  is  ripe,  straight- 
way  he   putteth    forth   the   sickle,   because   the   harvest   is 
come."     (Mark  iv.  26). 

2.  The  Savior  here  shows  that  it  is  God  who  operates 
in  everything,  and  that  nothing  remains  for  man  but  to  re- 
ceive  the   seeds   of  instruction   with   a   devout  heart;   the 
processes  ef  growth  and  of  ripening  will  then  continue  of 
themselves,  unperceived  by  him.     The  duty  of  the  teachers 
of  the  young,  therefore,  is  none  other  than  skilfully  to  scat- 
ter the  seeds  of  instruction  in  their  minds,  and  carefully  to 
water  God's  plants.     Increase  and  growth  will  come  from 
above. 

3.  Is  there  any  who  denies  that  sowing  and  planting 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENWS  261 

need  skill  and  experience?  If  an  unpracticed  gardener 
plant  an  orchard  with  young  trees,  the  greater  number  of 
them  die,  and  the  few  that  prosper  do  so  rather  through 
chance  than  through  skill.  But  the  trained  gardener  goes 
to  work  carefully,  since  he  is  well  instructed,  where,  when, 
and  how  to  act  and  what  to  leave  alone,  that  he  may  meet 
with  no  failure.  It  is  true  that  even  an  experienced  man 
meets  with  failure  occasionally  (indeed  it  is  scarcely  possible 
for'  a  man  to  take  such  careful  forethought  that  no  error 
can  arise)  ;  but  we  are  now  discussing,  not  the  abstract 
question  of  circumspection  and  chance,  but  the  art  of  doing 
away  with  chance  by  means  of  circumspection. 

4.  Hitherto  the  method  of  instruction  has  been  so  uncer- 
tain that  scarcely  any  one  would  dare  to  say :    "  In  so  many 
years  I  will  bring  this  youth  to  such  and  such  a  point,  I  will 
educate  him  in  such  and  such  a  way."    We  must  therefore 
see  if  it  be  possible  to  place  the  art  of  intellectual  discipline- 
on  such  a  firm  basis  that  sure  and  certain  progress  may  be 
made. 

5.  Since  tthis  basis  can  be  properly  laid  only  by  assim- 
ilating the  processes  of  art  as  much  as  possible  to  those  of 
nature,  we  will  follow  the  method  of  nature,  taking  as  our 
example  a  bird  hatching  out  its  young;  and,  if  we  see  with 
what  good  results  gardeners,  painters,  and  builders  follow 
in  the  track  of  nature,  we  shall  have  to  recognize  that  the 
educator  of  the  young  should  follow  in  the  same  path. 

6.  If  any  think  this  course  of  action  petty  or  common- 
place, let  him  consider  that   from  that  which  is  of  daily 
occurrence  and  universal  notoriety  and  which  takes  place 
with  good  results  in  nature  and  in  the  arts   (the  teaching 
art  excepted),  we  are  seeking  to  deduce  that  which  is  less 
known  and   which   is  necessary  for  our  present   purpose. 
Indeed,  if  the   facts  from  which  we  derive  the  principles 
that  form  the  basis  for  our  precepts  are  known,  we  can 


262  JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS 

i 
entertain  hopes  that  our  conclusions  will  be  the  more  evi- 

First  Principle. 

7.  Nature  observes  a  suitable  time. —  For  example :  a 
bird  that  wishes  to  multiply  its  species,  does  not  set  about 
it   in   winter,   when   everything  is   stiff  with  cold,   nor  in 
summer  when  everything  is  parched  and  withered  by  the 
heat;  nor  in  autumn,  when  the  vital  force  of  all  creatures 
declines  with  the  sun's  declining  rays,  and  a  new  winter 
with  hostile  mien  is  approaching;  but  in  spring,  when  the 
sun  brings  back  life  and  strength  to  all.     Again,  the  proc- 
ess consists  of  several  steps.     While  it  is  yet  cold  the  bird 
conceives  the  eggs  and  warms  them  inside  its  body,  where 
they   are   protected   from   the   cold;    when   the   air   grows 
warmer  it  lays  them  in  its  nest,  but  does  not  hatch  them 
out  until  the  warm  season  comes,  that  the  tender  chicks 
may  grow  accustomed  to  light  and  warmth  by  degrees. 

8.  Imitation. —  In   the    same    way    the    gardener    takes 
care  to  do  nothing  out  of  season.     He  does  not,  therefore, 
plant  in  the  winter  (because  the  sap  is  then  in  the  roots, 
preparing  to  mount  and  nourish  the  plant  later  on)  ;  nor  in 
summer    (when  the  sap  is  already  dispersed  through  the 
branches)  ;  nor  in  autumn  (when  the  sap  is  retiring  to  the 
roots   once   more)  ;  but   in   spring,   when  the   moisture  is 
beginning  to  rise  from  the  roots  and  the  upper  part  of 
the  plant  begins  to  shoot.     Later  on,  too,  it  is  of  great  im- 
portance to  the  little  tree  that  the  right  time  be  chosen 
for  the  various  operations  that  are  needful,  such  as  manur- 
ing,   pruning,   and   cutting.     Even   the  tree   itself   has   its 
proper   time   for  putting   forth   shoots   and   blossoms,    for 
growing,  and  for  coming  to  maturity. 

In  the  same  manner  the  careful  builder  must  choose  the 
right  time  for  cutting  timber,  burning  bricks,  laying  foun- 
dations, building  and  plastering  walls,  etc. 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS  263 

9.  Deviation. —  In  direct  opposition  to  this  principle,  a 
twofold  error  is  committed  in  schools. 

(i.)     The  right  time  for  mental  exercise  is  not  chosen. 

(ii.)  The  exercises  are  not  properly  divided,  so  that  all 
advance  may  be  made  through  the  several  stages  needful, 
without  any  omission.  As  long  as  the  boy  is  still  a  child  he 
cannot  be  taught,  because  the  roots  of  his  understanding 
are  still  too  deep  below  the  surface.  As  soon  as  he  be- 
comes old,  it  is  too  late  to  teach  him,  because  the  intellect 
and  the  memory  are  then  failing.  In  middle  age  it  is  diffi- 
cult, because  the  forces  of  the  intellect  are  dissipated  over 
a  variety  of  objects  and  are  not  easily  concentrated.  The 
season  of  youth,  therefore,  must  be  chosen.  Then  life  and 
mind  are  fresh  and  gathering  strength ;  then  everything  is 
vigorous  and  strikes  root  deeply. 

10.  Rectification. —  We  conclude,  therefoie,  that 

(i.)  The  education  of  men  should  be  commenced  in 
the  springtime  of  life,  that  is  to  say,  in  boyhood  (for 
boyhood  is  the  equivalent  of  spring,  youth  of  summer, 
manhood  of  autumn,  and  old  age  of  winter). 

(ii.)  The  morning  hours  are  the  most  suitable  for  study 
(for  here  again  the  morning  is  the  equivalent  of  spring, 
midday  of  summer,  the  evening  of  autumn,  and  the  night  of 
winter). 

(iii.)  All  the  subjects  that  are  to  be  learned  should  be 
arranged  so  as  to  suit  the  age  of  the  students,  that  nothing 
which  is  beyond  their  comprehension  be  given  them  to 
learn. 

Second  Principle. 

11.  Nature  prepares  the  material,  before  she  begins  to 
give  it  form. —  For  example:  the  bird  that  wishes  to  pro- 
duce a  creature  similar  to  itself  first  conceives  the  embryo 
from  a  drop  of  its  blood ;  it  then  prepares  the  nest  in  which 


264  JOHN  AMOS  COM  EN  I  US 

it  is  to  lay  the  eggs,  but  does  not  begin  to  hatch  them  until 
the  chick  is  formed  and  moves  within  the  shell. 

12.  Imitation. —  In  the  same  way  the  prudent  builder, 
before  he  begins   to  erect  a  building,  collects  a  quantity 
of  wood,  lime,  stones,  iron,  and  the  other  things  needful, 
in  order  that  he  may  not  have  to  stop  the  work  later  on 
from  lack  of  materials,  nor  find  that  its  solidity  has  been 
impaired.     In  the  same  way,  the  painter  who  wishes  to  pro- 
duce a  picture,  prepares  the  canvas,  stretches  it  on  a  frame, 
lays  the  ground  on  it,  mixes  his  colors,  places  his  brushes 
so  that  they  may  be  ready  to  hand,  and  then  at  last  com- 
mences to  paint. 

In  the  same  way  the  gardener,  before  he  commences 
operations,  tries  to  have  the  garden,  the  stocks,  the  grafts, 
and  the  tools  in  readiness,  that  he  may  not  have  to  fetch 
the  necessary  appliances  while  at  work,  and  so  spoil  the 
whole  operation. 

13.  Deviation. —  Against  this  principle  schools  are  of- 
fenders :  firstly,  because  they  take  no  care  to  prepare  before- 
hand the  mechanical  aids  such  as  books,  maps,  pictures, 
diagrams,  etc.,  and  to  have  them  in  readiness  for  general 
use,  but  at  the  moment  that  they  need  this  or  that,  they 
make  experiments,  draw,  dictate,  copy,  etc.,  and  when  this 
is  done  by  an  unskilled  or  careless  teacher  (and  their  num- 
ber increases  daily),  the  result  is  deplorable.     It  is  just  as 
if  a  physician,  whenever  he  wishes  to  administer  a  medicine, 
had  to  wander  through  gardens  and   forests,   and   collect 
and  distil  herbs  and  roots,  though  medicaments  to  suit  every 
case  should  be  ready  to  his  hand. 

14.  Secondly,  because  even  in  school-books,  the  natural 
order,  that  the  matter  come  first  and  the  form  follow,  is  not 
observed.     Everywhere  the  exact  opposite  is  to  be  found. 
The  classification  of  objects  is  unnaturally  made  to  precede 
a  knowledge  of  the  objects  themselves,  although  it  is  im- 


SELECTION  FROM  COMEN1US  265 

possible  to  classify,  before  the  matter  to  be  classified   is 
there. 

I  will  demonstrate  this  by  four  examples: 

15.  (i)     Languages  are  learned  in  schools  before  the 
sciences,  since  the  intellect  is  detained  for  some  years  over 
the  study  of  languages,  and  only  then  allowed  to  proceed 
to  the  sciences,  mathematics,  physics,  etc.     And  yet  things 
are  essential,  words  only  accidental;  things  are  the  body, 
words  but  the  garment;  things  are  the  kernel,  words  the 
shells  and  husks.     Both  should  therefore  be  presented  to 
the  intellect  at  the  same  time,  but  particularly  the  things, 
since  they  are  as  much  objects  of  the  understanding  as  are 
languages. 

1 6.  (2)     Even  in  the  study  of  languages  the  proper 
order  is  reversed,  since  the  students  commence,  not  with 
some  author  or  with  a  skilfully-compiled  phrase-book,  but 
with  the  grammar;  though  the  authors  (and  in  their  own 
way    the   phrase-books)    present   the   material   of    speech, 
namely,   words,   while  the  grammars   on   the  other   hand, 
only  give  the  form ;  that  is  to  say,  the  laws  of  the  founda- 
tion, order,  and  combination  of  words. 

17.  (3)     In   the   encyclopaedic   compilations   of   human 
knowledge,  the  arts  are  always  placed  first,  while  the  sci- 
ences follow  after,  though  the  latter  teach  of  the  things 
themselves,  the  former  how  to  manipulate  the  things. 

18.  (4)     Finally:  it  is  the  abstract  rules  that  are  first 
taught  and  then  illustrated  by  dragging  in  a  few  examples ; 
though  it  is  plain  that  a  light  should  precede  him  whom  it 
lights. 

19.  Rectification. — It   follows,   therefore,   that   in   order 
to  effect  a  thorough  improvement  in  schools   it  is  neces- 
sary: 

(i.)     That  books  and  the  materials  necessary  for  teaching 
be  held  in  readiness. 


.266  JOHN  AMOS  COMENWS 

(ii.)  That  the  understanding  be  first  instructed  in  things, 
and  then  taught  to  express  them  in  language. 

(iii.)  That  no  language  be  learned  from  a  grammar,  but 
from  suitable  authors. 

(iv.)  That  the  knowledge  of  things  precede  the  knowl- 
edge of  their  combinations. 

(v.)     And  that  examples  come  before  rules. 

Third  Principle. 

20.  Nature  chooses  a  fit  subject  to  act  upon,  or  first 
submits  one  to  a  suitable  treatment  in  order  to  make  it  fit. — 
For  example:  a  bird  does  not  place  any  object  in  the  nest 
in  which  it  sits,  but  an  object  of  such  a  kind  that  a  chicken 
can  be  hatched  from  it;  that  is  to  say,  an  egg.     If  a  small 
stone  or  anything  else  falls  into  the  nest,  it  throws  it  out  as 
useless.     But  when  the  process  of  hatching  takes  place,  it 
warms  the  material  contained  in  the  egg,  and  looks  after  it 
until  the  chicken  makes  its  way  out. 

21.  Imitation. —  In  the  same  way  the  builder  cuts  down 
timber,  of  as  good  quality  as  possible,  dries  it,  squares  it, 
and  saws  it  into  planks.     Then  he  chooses  a  spot  to  build  on, 
clears  it,  lays  a  new  foundation,  or  repairs  the  old  one  so 
that  he  can  make  use  of  it. 

22.  In  the  same  way,  if  the  canvas  or  the  surface  do  not 
suit  his  colors,  the  painter  tries  to  make  them  more  suitable, 
and,  by  rubbing  them  and  polishing  them,  fits  them  for  his 
use. 

23.  The  gardener  too  (i)  chooses  from  a  fruit-bearing 
stock  a  shoot  that  possesses  as  much  vitality  as  possible; 
(2)  transplants  it  to  a  garden,  and  places  it  carefully  in  the 
earth;  (3)   does  not  burden  it  with  a  new  graft  unless  he 
sees  that  it  has  taken  root;  (4)  before  he  inserts  the  new 
graft,  removes  the   former   shoot,   and  even   cuts  a   piece 
away  round  the  stock  in  order  that  none  of  the  sap  may 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENWS  267 

perform  any  function  other  than  that  of  vivifying  the  graft. 

24.  Deviation. —  Against  this  principle  the  schools  are 
offenders;  not  because  they  include  the  weak  of  intellect 
(for  in  our  opinion  all  the  young  should  be  admitted  into 
the  schools)  but  far  more  because: 

(1)  These  tender  plants  are  not  transplanted  into  the 
garden,  that  is  to  say,   are  not  entirely  entrusted  to  the 
schools,  so  that  none,  who  are  to  be  trained  as  men,  shall 
be  allowed  to  leave  the  workshop  before  their  training  is 
complete. 

(2)  The  attempt  is  generally  made  to  engraft  that  no- 
blest graft  of  knowledge,  virtue  and  piety,  too  early,  before 
the  stock  itself  has  taken  root;  that  is  to  say,  before  the 
desire  to  learn  has  been  excited  in  those  who  have  no  natural 
bent  in  that  direction. 

(3)  The  side-shoots  or  root-suckers  are  not  removed 
before  the  grafting  takes  place;  that  is  to  say,  the  minds 
are  not  freed  from  all  idle  tendencies  by  being  habituated 
to  discipline  and  order. 

25.  Rectification. —  It  is  therefore  desirable : 

(i.)     That  all  who  enter  schools  persevere  in  their  studies. 

(ii.)  That,  before  any  special  study  is  introduced,  the 
mind  of  the  student  be  prepared  and  made  receptive  of  it. 

(iii.)  That  all  obstacles  be  removed  out  of  the  way  of 
schools. 

"  For  it  is  of  no  use  to  give  precepts,"  says  Seneca,  "  un- 
less the  obstacles  that  stand  in  the  way  be  removed." 

Fourth  Principle. 

26.  Nature  is  not  confused  in  its  operations,  but  in  its 
forward  progress  advances  distinctly  from  one  point  to  an- 
other.—  For  example :  if  a  bird  is  being  produced,  its  bones, 
veins,  and  nerves  are  formed  at  separate  and  distinct  periods ; 


268  JOHN  AMOS  COMENWS 

at  one  time  its  flesh  becomes  firm,  at  another  it  receives  its 
covering  of  skin  or  feathers,  and  at  another  it  learns  how 
to  fly,  etc. 

27.  Imitation. —  When  a  builder  lays  foundations,  he  does 
not  build  the  walls  at  the  same  time,  much  less  does  he  put 
on  the  roof,  but  does  each  of  these  things  at  the  proper 
time  and  in  the  proper  place. 

.28.  In  the  same  way  a  painter  does  not  work  at  twenty 
or  thirty  pictures  at  once,  but  occupies  himself  with  one 
only.  For,  though  he  may  from  time  to  time  put  a  few 
touches  to  some  others  or  give  his  attention  to  something 
else,  it  is  on  one  picture  and  one  only  that  he  concentrates 
his  energies. 

29.  In  the  same  way  the  gardener  does  not  plant  several 
shoots  at  once,  but  plants  them  one  after  the  other,  that 
he  may  neither  confuse  himself  nor  spoil  the  operations  of 
nature. 

30.  Deviation. —  Confusion    has    arisen    in    the    schools 
through  the  endeavor  to  teach  the  scholars  many  things  at 
one  time.     As,   for   example,   Latin  and  Greek  grammar, 
perhaps  rhetoric  and  poetic  as  well,  and  a  multitude  of  other 
subjects.     For  it  is  notorious  that  in  the  classical  schools  the 
subject-matter  for  reading  and  for  composition  is  changed 
almost  every  hour  throughout  the  day.     If  this  be  not  con- 
fusion I  should  like  to  know  what  is.     It  is  just  as  if  a  shoe- 
maker wished  to  make  six  or  seven  new  shoes  at  once,  and 
took  them  up  one  .by  one  in  turn,  only  to  lay  them  aside  in 
a  few  minutes ;  or  as  if  a  baker,  who  wished  to  place  various 
kinds  of  bread  in  his  oven,  were  to  take  them  out  again 
immediately,  removing  one  kind  as  he  put  in  another.     Who 
would  commit  such  an  act  of  folly  ?     The  shoemaker  finishes 
one  shoe  before  he  begins  to  make  another.     The  baker 
places  no  fresh  bread  in  the  oven  until  that  already  in  it  is 
thoroughly  baked. 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS  269 

31.  Rectification. —  Let  us  imitate  these  people  and  take 
care  not  to  confuse  scholars  who  are  learning  grammar  by 
teaching  them  dialectic,  or  by  introducing  rhetoric  into  their 
studies.     We  should  also  put  off  the  study  of  Greek  until 
Latin  is  mastered,  since  it  is  impossible  to  concentrate  the 
mind  on  any  one  thing,  when  it  has  to  busy  itself  with  sev- 
eral things  at  once. 

That  great  man,  Joseph  Scaliger,  was  well  aware  of  this. 
It  is  related  of  him  that  (perhaps  on  the  advice  of  his  father) 
he  never  occupied  himself  with  more  than  one  branch  of 
knowledge  at  once,  and  concentrated  all  his  energies  on 
that  one.  It  was  owing  to  this  that  he  was  able  to  master 
not  only  fourteen  languages,  but  also  all  the  arts  and  sciences 
that  lie  within  the  province  of  man.  He  devoted  himself 
to  these  one  after  the  other  with  such  success  that  in  each 
subject  his  learning  excelled  that  of  men  who  had  given 
their  whole  lives  to  it.  And  those  who  have  tried  to  follow 
in  his  footsteps  and  imitate  his  method,  have  done  so  with 
considerable  success. 

32.  Schools,  therefore,  should  be  organized  in  such  a 
manner  that  the  scholar  shall  be  occupied  with  only  one 
object  of  study  at  any  given  time. 

Fifth  Principle. 

33.  In  all  the  operations  of  nature  development  is  from 
within. —  For  example :  in  the  case  of  the  bird  it  is  not  the 
claws,  or  the  feathers,  or  the  skin  that  is  first  formed,  but 
the  inner  parts;  the  outer  parts  are  formed  later,  at  the 
proper  season. 

34.  Imitation. —  In  the  same  way  the  gardener  does  not 
insert  his  graft  into  the  outer  bark  nor  into  the  outside  layer 
of  wood,  but  making  an  incision  right  into  the  pith,  places 
the  graft  as  far  in  as  it  will  go. 


270  JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS 

In  this  way  he  makes  the  joint  so  firm  that  the  sap 
cannot  escape,  but  is  forced  right  into  the  shoot,  and  uses 
all  its  strength  in  vivifying  it. 

35.  So  too,  a   tree,   that   is   nourished  by   the   rain  of 
heaven  and  the  moisture  of  the  earth,  assimilates  its  nutri- 
ment, not  through  its  outer  bark,  but  the  pores  of  its  inmost 
parts.     On    this    account    the    gardener    waters,    not    the 
branches,  but  the  roots.     Animals  also  convey  their  food, 
not  to  their  outer  limbs,  but  to  the  stomach,  which  assimi- 
lates it  and  nourishes  the  whole  body.     If,  therefore,  the 
educator  of  the  young  give  special  attention  to  the  roots  of 
knowledge,  the  understanding,  these  will  soon  impart  their 
vitality  to  the  stem,  that  is,  to  the  memory,  and   finally 
blossoms  and  fruits,  that  is  to  say,  a  facile  use  of  language 
and  practical  capacity,  will  be  produced. 

36.  Deviation. —  It  is  on  this  point  that  those  teachers 
fall  into  error  who,  instead  of  thoroughly  explaining  the 
subjects  of  study  to  the  boys  under  their  charge,  give  them 
endless  dictations,  and  make  them  learn  their  lessons  off  by 
heart.     Even  those  who  wish  to  explain  the  subject-matter 
do  not  know  how  to  do  so ;  that  is  to  say,  do  not  know  how 
to  tend  the  roots  or  how  to  engraft  the  graft  of  knowledge. 
Thus  they  fatigue  their  pupils,  and  resemble  a  man  who 
uses  a  club  or  a  mallet,  instead  of  a  knife,  when  he  wishes 
to  make  an  incision  in  a  plant. 

37.  Rectification. —  It  therefore  follows : 

(i.)  That  the  scholar  should  be  taught  first  to  under- 
stand things,  and  then  to  remember  them,  and  that  no  stress 
should  be  laid  on  the  use  of  speech  or  pen,  till  after .  a 
training  on  the  first  two  points. 

(ii.)  That  the  teacher  should  know  all  the  methods  by 
which  the  understanding  may  be  sharpened,  and  should  put 
them  into  practice  skilfully. 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENWS  271 


Sixth  Principle. 

38.  Nature,  in  its  formative  processes,  begins  with  the 
universal  and  ends  with  the  particular. —  For  example :  a 
bird  is  to  be  produced  from  an  egg.     It  is  not  the  head,  an 
eye,  a  feather,  or  a  claw  that  is  first  formed,  but  the  follow- 
ing process  takes  place.     The  whole  egg  is  warmed,  the 
warmth  produces  movement,  and  this  movement  brings  into 
existence  a  system  of  veins,  which  mark  in  outline  the  shape 
of  the  whole  bird  (defining  the  parts  that  are  to  become  the 
head,  the  wings,  the  feet,  etc.).     It  is  not  until  this  outline 
is  complete  that  the  individual  parts  are  brought  to  perfec- 
tion. 

39.  Imitation. —  The   builder   takes   this   as   his   model. 
He  first  makes  a  general  plan  of  the  building  in  his  head, 
or  on  paper,  or  in  wood.     Then  he  lays  the  foundations, 
builds  the  walls,  and  lays  on  the  roof.     It  is  not  until  he 
has  done  this  that  he  gives  his  attention  to  the  small  details 
that  are  necessary  to  complete  a  house,  such  as  doors,  win- 
dows, staircases,  etc. ;  while  last  of  all  he  adds  ornamenta^- 
tion  such  as  paintings,  sculptures,  and  carpets. 

40.  An  artist  proceeds  in  the  same  way.     He  does  not 
begin  by  drawing  an  ear,  an  eye,  a  nose,  or  a  mouth,  but 
first  makes  a  charcoal  sketch  of  the  face  or  of  the  whole 
body.     If   he   be   satisfied   that   this   sketch   resembles   the 
original,  he  paints  it  with  light  strokes  of  the  brush,  still 
omitting  all  detail.     Then,  finally,  he  puts  in  the  light  and 
shade,  and,  using  a  variety  of  colors,  finishes  the  several 
parts  in  detail. 

41.  The  procedure  of  the  sculptor  is  the  same.     When 
he  wishes  to  carve  a  statue,  he  takes  a  block  of  marble  and 
shapes  it  roughly.     Then  he  sets  to  work  more  carefully  and 
outlines  the  most  important  features.     Finally,  he  chisels  the 


272  JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS 

individual  parts  with  the  greatest  accuracy  and  colors  them 
artistically. 

42.  In  the  same  way  the  gardener  takes  the  most  simple 
and  universal  part  of  a  tree,  namely,  a  shoot.     Later  on, 
this  can  put  forth  as  many  branches  as  it  possesses  buds. 

43.  Deviation. —  From  this  it  follows  that  it  is  a  mis- 
take to  teach  the  several  branches  of  science  in  detail  before 
a  general  outline  of  the  whole  realm  of  knowledge  has  been 
placed  before  the  student,  and  that  no  one  should  be  in- 
structed in  such  a  way  as  to  become  proficient  in  any  one 
branch  of  knowledge  without  thoroughly  understanding  its 
relation  to  all  the  rest. 

44.  It  follows  also  that  arts,  sciences,  and  languages  are 
badly  taught  unless  a  general  notion  of  the  elements  be  first 
given.     I   remember   well   that,   when   we   began   to   learn 
dialectic,  rhetoric,  and  metaphysics,  we  were,  at  the  very 
beginning,  overburdened  with  long-winded  rules,  with  com- 
mentaries and  notes  on  commentaries,  with  comparison  of 
authors  and  with  knotty  questions.     Latin  grammar   was 
taught  us  with  all  the  exceptions  and  irregularities;  Greek 
grammar  with  all  its  dialects,  and  we,  poor  wretches,  were  so 
confused  that  we  scarcely  understood  what  it  was  all  about. 

45.  Rectification. — The  remedy  for  this  want  of  system 
is  as  follows :     At  the  very  commencement  of  their  studies, 
boys   should   receive  instruction   in   the   first  principles  of 
general  culture,  that  is  to  say,  the  subjects  learned  should  be 
arranged  in  such  a  manner  that  the  studies  that  come  later 
introduce  nothing  new,  but  only  expand  the  elements  of 
knowledge  that  the  boy  has  already  mastered.     Just  as  a 
tree,  even  if  it  live  for  a  hundred  years,  puts  no  new  branches, 
but  only  suffers  those  that  already  exist  to  develop  and 
to  spread. 

(i.)     Each  language,  science,  or  art  must  be  first  taught 
in  its  most  simple  elements,  that  the  student  may  obtain  a 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS  273 

general  idea  of  it.  (ii.)  His  knowledge  may  next  be  de- 
veloped further  by  placing  rules  and  examples  before  him. 
(iii.)  Then  he  may  be  allowed  to  learn  the  subject  system- 
atically with  the  exceptions  and  irregularities;  and  (iv.), 
last  of  all,  may  be  given  a  commentary,  though  only  where 
it  is  absolutely  necessary.  For  he  who  has  thoroughly  mas- 
tered a  subject  from  the  beginning  will  have  little  need  of  a 
commentary,  but  will  soon  be  in  the  position  to  write  one 
himself. 

Seventh  Principle. 

46.  Nature  makes  no  leaps,  but  proceeds  step  by  step, — 
The  development  of  a  chicken  consists  of  certain  gradual 
processes  which  cannot  be  omitted  or  deferred,  until  finally 
it  breaks  its  shell  and  comes  forth.     When  this  takes  place, 
the  mother  does  not  allow  the  young  bird  to  fly  and  seek  its 
food  (indeed  it  is  unable  to  do  so),  but  she  feeds  it  herself, 
and  by  keeping  it  warm  with  her  body  promotes  the  growth 
of  its  feathers.     When  the  chick's  feathers  have  grown  she 
does  not  thrust  it   forth   from   the  nest   immediately   and 
make  it  fly,  but  teaches  it  first  to  move  its  wings  in  the  nest 
itself  or  perching  on  its  edge,  then  to  try  to  fly  outside  the 
nest,  though  quite  near  it,   by  fluttering  from  branch  to 
branch,  then  to  fly  from  tree  to  tree,  and  later  on  from  hill  to 
hill,  till  finally  it  gains  sufficient  confidence  to  fly  right  out  in 
the  open.     It  is  easy  to  see  how  necessary  it  is  that  each  of 
these  processes  should  take  place  at  the  right  time ;  that  not 
only  the  time   should   be   suitable  but  that  the   processes 
should  be  graduated ;  and  that  there  should  be  not  graduation 
merely,  but  an  immutable  graduation. 

47.  Imitation. —  The  builder  proceeds  in  the  same  man- 
ner.    He  does  not  begin  with  the  gables  or  with  the  walls, 
but  with  the  foundations.     When  the  foundations  are  laid  he 

PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 18 


274  JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS 

does  not  go  on  with  the  roof,  but  builds  the  walls.  In  a 
word,  the  order  in  which  the  several  stages  are  combined 
depends  on  the  relation  that  they  mutually  bear  to  one  an- 
other. 

48.  The  gardener  likewise  has  to  adopt  the  principle  of 
graduation.     The  wild-stock  must  be  found,  dug  up,  trans- 
planted, pruned,  and  cut;  the  graft  must  be  inserted  and 
the  joint  made  firm,  etc.,  and  none  of  these  processes  can  be 
omitted  or  taken  in  a  different  order.     But,  if  these  processes 
are  carried  out  properly  and  in  the  right  order,  it  is  scarcely 
possible,  in  fact  it  is  impossible,  for  the  result  to  be  unsuc- 
cessful. 

49.  Deviation, —  It  is  an  evident  absurdity,  therefore,  if 
teachers  for  their  own  sake  and  that  of  their  pupils,  do  not 
graduate  the  subjects  which  they  teach  in  such  a  way  that, 
not  only  one  stage  may  lead  on  directly  to  the  next,  but  also 
that  each  shall  be  completed  in  a  given  space  of  time.     For 
unless  goals  are  set  up,  means  provided  for  reaching  them, 
and  a  proper  system  devised  for  the  use  of  those  means,  it  is 
easy  for  something  to  be  omitted  or  perverted,  and  failure 
is  the  result. 

50.  Rectification. —  It  follows  therefore : 

(i.)  That  all  studies  should  be  carefully  graduated 
throughout  the  various  classes,  in  such  a  way  that  those 
that  come  first  may  prepare  the  way  for  and  throw  light  on 
those  that  come  after. 

(ii.)  That  the  time  should  be  carefully  divided,  so  that 
each  year,  each  month,  each  day,  and  each  hour  may  have 
its  appointed  task. 

(iii)  That  the  division  of  the  time  and  of  the  subjects 
of  study  should  be  rigidly  adhered  to,  that  nothing  may  be 
omitted  or  perverted. 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENIUS  275 


Eighth  Principle. 

51.  //  nature  commences  anything,  it  does  not  leave  off 
until  the  operation  is  completed. —  If  a  bird,  urged  by  the 
impulse  of  nature,  begins  to  sit  on  eggs,  she  does  not  leave 
off  until  she  has  hatched  out  the  chickens.     If  she  sat  on 
them  for  a  few  hours  only,  the  embryo  in  the  egg  would 
become  cold  and  die.     Even  when  the  chickens  are  hatched 
she  does  not  cease  to  keep  them  warm,  but  continues  to  do 
so  until  they  have  grown  strong,  are  covered  with  feathers, 
and  can  endure  the  cold  air. 

52.  Imitation. —  The  painter,  also,  who  has  begun  a  pic- 
ture, will  produce  his  work  best  if  he  finish  it  without  any 
interruption.     For  in  this  case  the  colors  blend  better  and 
hold  faster. 

53.  For  this  reason  it  is  best  to  finish  the  erection  of  a 
building  without  any  interruption ;  otherwise  the  sun,  the 
wind,  and  the  rain  spoil  the  work,  the  later  additions  will  not 
be  so  firm,  and  on  every  side  there  will  be  cracks,  weak  spots, 
and  loose  joints. 

54.  The  gardener,  too,  acts  with  wisdom,  for  when  once 
he  has  begun  to  work  at  a  graft  he  does  not  cease  until  the 
operation  is  completed.     Since,  if  the  sap  dry  in  the  stock  or 
in  the  graft,  owing  to  a  delay  in  completing  the  process,  the 
plant  is  ruined. 

55.  Deviation. —  It  is  therefore  injurious  if  boys  are  sent 
to  school  for  months  or  years  continuously,  but  are  then 
withdrawn  for  considerable  periods  and  employed  otherwise; 
equally  so  if  the  teacher  commences  now  one  subject,  now 
another,  and  finishes  nothing  satisfactorily;  and  lastly,  it  is 
equally  fatal  if  he  does  not  fix  a  certain  task  for  each  hour, 
and  complete  it,  so  that  in  each  period  his  pupil  can  make  an 
unmistakable    advance   towards   the   desired   goal.     Where 


276  JOHN  AMOS  COMENIUS 

such  a  fire  is  wanting,  everything  grows  cold.  Not  without 
reason  does  the  proverb  say,  "  Strike  while  the  iron  is  hot." 
For  if  it  be  allowed  to  cool  it  is  useless  to  hammer  it,  but  it 
must  once  more  be  placed  in  the  fire,  and  thus  much  time  and 
iron  are  wasted.  Since  every  time  that  it  is  heated,  it  loses 
some  of  its  mass. 

56.  Rectification. —  It  follows  therefore : 

(i.)  That  he  who  is  sent  to  school  must  be  kept  there 
until  he  becomes  well  informed,  virtuous,  and  pious. 

(ii.)  That  the  school  must  be  situated  in  a  quiet  spot, 
far  from  noise  and  distractions. 

(iii.)  That  whatever  has  to  be  done,  in  accordance  with 
the  scheme  of  study,  must  be  done  without  any  shirking. 

(iv.)  That  no  boys,  under  any  pretext  whatever,  should 
be  allowed  to  stay  away  or  to  play  truant. 

Ninth  Principle. 

57.  Nature  carefully  avoids  obstacles  and  things  likely 
to  cause  hurt. —  For  example,  when  a  bird  is  hatching  eggs 
it  does  not  allow  a  cold  wind,  much  less  rain  or  hail  to 
reach  them.     It  also  drives  away  snakes,  birds  of  prey,  etc. 

58.  Imitation. — In  the  same  way  the  builder,  so  far  as 
is  possible,  keeps  dry  his  wood,  bricks,  and  lime,  and  does 
not  allow  what  he  has  built  to  be  destroyed  or  to  fall  down. 

59.  So,  too,  the  painter  protects  a  newly-painted  pic- 
ture from  wind,  from  violent  heat,  and  from  dust,  and  al- 
lows no  hand  but  his  own  to  touch  it. 

60.  The   gardener   also  protects   a   young  plant   by   a 
railing  or  by  hurdles,  that  hares  or  goats  may  not  gnaw 
it  or  root  it  up. 

61.  Deviation. — It  is  therefore  folly  to  introduce  a  stu- 
dent to  controversial  points  when  he  is  just  beginning  a 
subject;  that  is  to  say,  to  allow  a  mind  that  is  mastering 


SELECTION  FROM  COMENWS  277 

something  new  to  assume  an  attitude  of  doubt.  What  is 
this  but  to  tear  up  a  plant  that  is  just  beginning  to  strike 
root?  (Rightly  does  Hugo  say:  "He  who  starts  by  in- 
vestigating doubtful  points  will  never  enter  into  the  temple 
of  wisdom.")  But  this  is  exactly  what  takes  place  if  the 
young  are  not  protected  from  incorrect,  intricate,  and  badly 
written  books  as  well  as  from  evil  companions. 

62.  Rectification. — Care  should  therefore  be  taken 

(i.)  That  the  scholars  receive  no  books  but  those  suit- 
able for  their  classes. 

(ii.)  That  these  books  be  of  such  a  kind  that  they  can 
rightly  be  termed  sources  of  wisdom,  virtue,  and  piety. 

(iii.)  That  neither  in  the  school  nor  in  its  vicinity  the 
scholars  be  allowed  to  mix  with  bad  companions. 

63.  If   all    these   recommendations   are   observed,    it    is 
scarcely  possible  that  schools  should  fail  to  attain  their  ob- 
ject. 


XVIII.    JOHN  LOCKE. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

John  Locke,  distinguished  as  a  philosopher  and  educator, 
was  born  at  Wrington  in  Somersetshire,  August  29,  1632. 
His  father  served  as  captain  in  the  Parliamentary  army  dur- 
ing the  Civil  War.  After  receiving  a  preparatory  training 
at  Westminster  School,  he  proceeded  to  Oxford,  where  he 
took  his  bachelor's  degree  in  1655.  He  was  endowed  with 
a  penetrating  and  practical  mind,  and,  like  Milton  at  Cam- 
bridge, he  early  found  fault  with  the  university  on  account 
of  its  extreme  conservative  tendencies.  In  after-life  he  ex- 
pressed regret  that  so  much  of  his  time  had  been  wasted 
in  what  he  regarded  as  profitless  studies. 

After  taking  his  degree  Locke  studied  medicine,  in  which 
he  made  noteworthy  attainments.  In  1664  he  went  to  Ber- 
lin as  secretary  to  the  English  envoy  Sir  William  Swan. 
Returning  to  Oxford  at  the  end  of  a  year,  he  made  the  ac- 
quaintance of  the  Earl  of  Shaftesbury,  by  whom  he  was  in- 
troduced into  the  society  of  the  most  eminent  political  leaders 
of  the  day.  He  superintended  the  education  of  the  Earl 
of  Shaftesbury's  son ;  and  it  was  while  acting  as  tutor  in 
this  distinguished  family,  that  he  developed  the  compre- 
hensive and  independent  views  embodied  in  his  great  edu- 
cational treatise  presently  to  be  noticed. 

Having  become  involved  in  the  political  troubles  of  his 
generous  patron,  who  had  been  charged  with  treason,  Locke 
deemed  it  prudent  to  go  to  Holland  in  voluntary  exile. 
This  was  in  1682.  In  1688  he  returned  to  England  in  the 

.  278 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  279 

fleet  that  conveyed  the  Princess  of  Orange.  The  year  fol- 
lowing he  published  his  great  philosophical  work,  "  An 
Essay  Concerning  Human  Understanding,"  which  was  de- 
signed to  establish  the  capabilities  and  the  limitations  of 
the  human  mind.  It  had  a  wide  circulation  not  only  in 
England,  but  also  in  France  and  Germany;  and  everywhere 
it  exerted  an  immense  influence  upon  philosophic  thought. 

In  1693,  after  he  had  achieved  a  European  reputation 
as  a  philosopher,  he  published  a  treatise  entitled,  "  Some 
Thoughts  Concerning  Education."  It  is  not  very  careful 
in  style  nor  methodical  in  its  arrangement;  but  it  is  espe- 
cially noteworthy  as  the  first  attempt  in  England  to  discuss 
education  in  a  comprehensive  and  practical  way.  Though 
primarily  designed  to  direct  the  education  of  a  gentleman, 
or  nobleman,  the  work,  in  large  measure,  is  applicable  to 
general  education.  It  has  influenced  educational  thought 
in  no  small  degree,  Rollin  and  Rousseau,  in  particular,  bor- 
rowing from  it  in  large  measure. 

"  Locke  is  a  thorough  Englishman,"  says  Karl  Schmidt, 
"  and  the  principle  underlying  his  education  is  the  principle 
according  to  which  the  English  people  have  developed. 
Hence  his  theory  of  education  has  in  the  history  of  peda- 
gogy the  same  value  that  the  English  nation  has  in  the 
history  of  the  world.  He  stood  in  strong  opposition  to  the 
scholastic  education  current  in  his  time,  a  living  protest 
against  the  prevailing  pedantry;  in  the  universal  develop- 
ment of  pedagogy  he  gives  impulse  to  the  movement  which 
grounds  education  upon  sound  psychological  principles, 
and  lays  stress  upon  breeding  and  the  formation  of  char- 
acter." 

Locke's  treatise  covers  more  than  two  hundred  octavo 
pages.  The  following  extracts,  in  every  case  the  language 
of  the  original,  are  designed  to  exhibit  his  views  on  all 
essential  points,  and  will  be  read  with  interest. 


280  JOHN  LOCKE 

SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE. 

SOME  THOUGHTS   CONCERNING  EDUCATION. 

I.  A  sound  mind  in  a  sound  body  is  a  short  but  full 
description  of  a  happy  state  in  this  world ;  he  that  has  these 
two  has  little  more  to  wish  for;  and  he  that  wants  either 
of  them  will  be  but  little  the  better  for  anything  else.  Men's 
happiness  or  misery  is  most  part  of  their  own  making. 
He  whose  mind  directs  not  wisely  will  never  take  the  right 
way ;  and  he  whose  body  is  crazy  and  feeble  will  never 
be  able  to  advance  in  it.  I  confess  there  are  some  men's 
constitutions  of  body  and  mind  so  vigorous,  and  well  framed 
by  nature  that  they  need  not  much  assistance  from  others; 
but,  by  the  strength  of  their  natural  genius,  they  are,  from 
their  cradles,  carried  towards  what  is  excellent;  and,  by 
the  privilege  of  their  happy  constitutions,  are  able  to  do 
wonders.  But  examples  of  this  kind  are  but  few ;  and  I 
think  I  may  say  that  of  all  the  men  we  meet  with,  nine  parts 
of  ten  are  good  or  evil,  useful  or  not,  by  their  education. 
It  is  that  which  makes  the  great  difference  in  mankind. 

2.  I  imagine  the  minds  of  children  as  easily  turned 
this  or  that  way  as  water  itself;  and  though  this  be  the 
principal  part,  and  our  main  care  should  be  about  the  in- 
side, yet  the  clay  cottage  is  not  to  be  neglected.  How  nec- 
essary health  is  to  our  business  and  happiness,  and  how 
requisite  a  strong  constitution,  able  to  endure  hardships  and 
fatigue,  is  to  one  that  will  make  any  figure  in  the  world, 
is  too  obvious  to  need  any  proof.  What  concerns  the  body 
and  health  reduces  itself  to  these  few  and  easily  observable 
rules.  Plenty  of  open  air,  exercise,  and  sleep ;  plain  diet, 
no  wine  or  strong  drink,  and  very  little  or  no  physic;  not 
too  warm  and  strait  clothing;  especially  the  head  and  feet 


SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE  281 

kept  cold,  and  the  feet  often  used  to  cold  water  and  exposed 
to  wet. 

3.  The  great  mistake  I  have  observed  in  people's  breed- 
ing their  children  has  been  that  this  has  not  been  taken 
care  enough  of  in  its  due  season;  that  the  mind  has  not 
been  made  obedient  to  discipline,  and  pliant  to  reason,  when 
at  first  it  was  most  tender,  most  easy  to  be  bowed.    Parents 
being  wisely  ordained  by  nature  to  love  their  children,  are 
very  apt,  if  reason  watch  not  that  natural  affection  very 
warily  —  are  apt,  I  say,  to  let  it  run  into  fondness.     They 
love  their  little  ones,  and  it  is  their  duty :  but  they  often 
with  them  cherish  their   faults   too.      They   must  not  be 
crossed,   forsooth;  they  must  be  permitted  to  have  their 
wills  in  all  things:  and  they  being  in  their  infancies  not 
capable  of  great  vices,  their  parents  think  they  may  safely 
enough  indulge  their  little  irregularities,  and  make  them- 
selves sport  with  that  pretty  perverseness,  which  they  think 
well  enough  becomes  that  innocent  age.     But  to  a  fond 
parent,  that  would  not  have  his  child  corrected  for  a  per- 
verse trick,  but  excused  it,  saying  it  was  a  small  matter, 
Solon  very  well  replied :  "  Aye,  but  custom  is  a  great  one." 

4.  He  that  has  not  a  mastery  over  his  inclinations,  he 
that  knows  not  how  to  resist  the  importunity  of  present 
pleasure  or  pain,  for  the  sake  of  what  reason  tells  him  is 
fit  to  be  done,  wants  the  true  principle  of  virtue  and  indus- 
try, and  is  in  danger  of  never  being  good  for  anything. 
This  temper,  therefore,  so  contrary  to  unguided  nature,  is 
to  be  got  betimes;  and  this  habit,  as  the  true  foundation 
of  future  ability  and  happiness,  is  to  be  wrought  into  the 
mind  as  early  as  may  be,  even  from  the  first  dawnings  of 
any  knowledge  or  apprehension  in  children ;  and  so  to  be 
confirmed  in  them,  by  all  the  care  and  ways  imaginable, 
by  those  who  have  the  oversight  of  their  education. 

5.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  mind  be  curbed  and  hum- 


282  JOHN  LOCKE 

bled  too  much  in  children ;  if  their  spirits  be  abased  and 
broken  much  by  too  strict  a  hand  over  them,  they  lose  all 
their  vigor  and  industry,  and  are  in  a  worse  state  than 
the  former.  For  extravagant  young  fellows,  that  have 
liveliness  and  spirit,  need  sometimes  to  be  set  right,  and 
so  make  able  and  great  men:  but  dejected  minds,  timorous 
and  tame,  and  low  spirits,  are  hardly  ever  to  be  raised,  and 
very  seldom  attain  to  anything.  To  avoid  the  danger  that  is 
on  either  hand  is  the  great  art:  and  he  that  has  found  a 
way  how  to  keep  up  a  child's  spirit,  easy,  active,  and  free, 
and  yet,  at  the  same  time,  to  restrain  him  from  many  things 
he  has  a  mind  to,  and  to  draw  him  to  things  that  are  un- 
easy to  him  —  he,  I  say,  that  knows  how  to  reconcile  these 
seeming  contradictions,  has,  in  my  opinion,  got  the  true 
secret  of  education. 

6.  He  therefore  that  is  about  children  should  well  study 
their  natures  and  aptitudes,  and  see,  by  often  trials,  what 
turn  they   easily   take,   and  what  becomes   them;   observe 
what  their  native  stock  is,  how  it  may  be  improved,  and 
what  it  is  fit  for ;  he  should  consider  what  they  want,  whether 
they  be  capable  of  having  it  wrought  into  them  by  industry, 
and  incorporated  there  by  practice ;  and  whether  it  be  worth 
while  to  endeavor  it.     For  in  many  cases  all  that  we  can 
do  or  should  aim  at,  is  to  make  the  best  of  what  nature  has 
given,  to  prevent   the  vices  and   faults  to   which   such   a 
constitution  is  most  inclined,  and  give  it  all  the  advantages 
it   is  capable  of.     Every  one's  natural   genius   should  be 
carried  as  far  as  it  could;  but  to  attempt  the  putting  an- 
other upon  him  will  be  but  labor  in  vain;  and  what  is  so 
plaistered  on  will  at  best  sit  but  untowardly,  and  have  al- 
ways hanging  to  it  the  ungracefulness  of  constraint  and 
affectation. 

7.  It  is  virtue,  direct  virtue,  which  is  the  hard  and  val- 
uable part  to  be  aimed  at  in  education,  and  not  a  forward 


SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE  283 

pertness  or  any  little  arts  of  shifting.  All  other  consid- 
erations and  accomplishments  should  give  way  and  be  post- 
poned to  this.  This  is  the  solid  and  substantial  good,  which 
tutors  should  not  only  read  lectures  and  talk  of,  but  the 
labor  and  art  of  education  should  furnish  the  mind  with, 
and  fasten  there,  and  never  cease  till  the  young  man  had 
a  true  relish  to  it,  and  placed  his  strength,  his  glory,  and 
his  pleasure  in  it. 

The  more  this  advances,  the  easier  way  will  be  made  for 
other  accomplishments  in  their  turns.  For  he  that  is  brought 
to  submit  to  virtue  will  not  be  refractory  or  resty  in  any- 
thing that  becomes  him.  And  therefore  I  can  not  but 
prefer  breeding  of  a  young  gentleman  at  home  in  his  fath- 
er's sight,  under  a  good  governor,  as  much  the  best  and 
safest  way  to  this  great  and  main  end  of  education,  when 
it  can  be  had,  and  is  ordered  as  it  should  be. 

8.  It  will  perhaps  be  wondered  that  I  mention  reason- 
ing with  children;  and  yet  I  can  not  but  think  that  the 
true  way  of  dealing  with  them.  They  understand  it  as 
early  as  they  do  language ;  and  if  I  misobserve  not,  they 
love  to  be  treated  as  rational  creatures  sooner  than  is  im- 
agined. It  is  a  pride  should  be  cherished  in  them,  and  as 
much  as  can  be,  made  the  greatest  instrument  to  turn 
them  by. 

But  when  I  talk  of  reasoning,  I  do  not  intend  any  other 
but  such  as  is  suited  to  the  child's  capacity  and  apprehen- 
sion. Nobody  can  think  a  boy  of  three  or  seven  years  old 
should  be  argued  with  as  a  grown  man.  Long  discourses 
and  philosophical  reasonings  at  best  amaze  and  confound, 
but  do  not  instruct  children.  When  I  say  therefore  that 
they  must  be  treated  as  rational  creatures,  I  mean  that  you 
should  make  them  sensible,  by  the  mildness  of  your  car- 
riage, and  the  composure,  even  in  your  correction  of  them, 
that  what  you  do  is  reasonable  in  you,  and  useful  and  nee- 


284  JOHN  LOCKE 

essary  for  them;  and  that  it  is  not  out  of  caprice,  passion, 
or  fancy  that  you  command  or  forbid  them  anything.  This 
they  are  capable  of  understanding;  and  there  is  no  virtue 
they  should  be  excited  to,  nor  fault  they  should  be  kept 
from,  which  I  do  not  think  they  may  be  convinced  of;  but 
it  must  be  by  such  reasons  as  their  age  and  understanding 
are  capable  of,  and  those  proposed  always  in  very  few  and 
plain  words. 

9.  Beating  is  the  worst,  and  therefore  the  last  means 
to  be  used  in  the  correction  of  children ;  and  that  only  in 
cases  of  extremity,  after  all  gentler  ways  have  been  tried, 
and  proved   unsuccessful:   which,   if  well  observed,   there 
will  be  very  seldom  any  need  of  blows.     For,  it  not  being 
to  be  imagined  that  a  child  will  often,  if  ever,  dispute  his 
father's  present  command  in  any  particular  instance;  and 
the  father  not  interposing  his  absolute  authority,  in  per- 
emptory rules,  concerning  either  childish  or  indifferent  ac- 
tions, wherein  his  son  is  to  have  his  liberty ;  or  concerning 
his  learning  or  improvement,  wherein  there  is  no  compul- 
sion  to   be   used :   there   remains   only   the   prohibition   of 
some  vicious  actions,  wherein  a  child  is  capable  of  obsti- 
nacy, and  consequently  can  deserve  beating;  and  so  there 
will  be  but  very  few  occasions  of  that  discipline  to  be  used 
by  any  one  who  considers  well,  and  orders  his  child's  edu- 
cation as  it  should  be. 

10.  The  character  of  a  sober  man  and  a  scholar  is  what 
every  one  expects  in  a  tutor.     This  generally  is  thought 
enough,  and  is  all  that  parents  commonly  look  for.     But 
when  such  an  one  has  emptied  out  into  his  pupil  all  the 
Latin  and  logic  he  has  brought  from  the  university,  will 
that  furniture  make  him  a  fine  gentleman?     Or  can  it  be 
expected  that  he  should  be  better  bred,  better  skilled  in  the 
world,  better  principled  in  the  grounds  and  foundations  of 
true  virtue  and  generosity  than  his  young  tutor  is? 


SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE  285 

The  great  work  of  a  governor  is  to  fashion  the  carriage 
and  form  the  mind ;  to  settle  in  his  pupil  good  habits,  and 
the  principles  of  virtue  and  wisdom ;  to  give  him,  by  little 
and  little,  a  view  of  mankind;  and  work  him  into  a  love 
and  imitation  of  what  is  excellent  and  praiseworthy;  and, 
in  the  prosecution  of  it,  to  give  him  vigor,  activity,  and  in- 
dustry. The  studies  which  he  sets  him  upon  are  but,  as 
it  were,  the  exercises  of  his  faculties,  and  employment  of 
his  time,  to  keep  him  from  sauntering  and  idleness,  to 
teach  him  application,  and  accustom  him  to  take  pains,  and 
to  give  him  some  little  taste  of  what  his  own  industry 
must  perfect.  For  who  expects  that  under  a  tutor  a  young 
gentleman  should  be  an  accomplished  critic,  orator,  or  lo- 
gician ;  go  to  the  bottom  of  metaphysics,  natural  philosophy, 
or  mathematics;  or  be  a  master  in  history  or  chronology? 
though  something  of  each  of  these  is  to  be  taught  him: 
but  it  is  only  to  open  the  door  that  he  may  look  in,  and, 
as  it  were,  begin  an  acquaintance,  but  not  to  dwell  there; 
and  a  governor  would  be  much  blamed  that  should  keep 
his  pupil  too  long,  and  lead  him  too  far  in  most  of  them. 
But  of  good  breeding,  knowledge  of  the  world,  virtue,  in- 
dustry, and  a  love  of  reputation,  he  can  not  have  too  much ; 
and  if  he  have  these,  he  will  not  long  want  what  he  needs 
or  desires  of  the  other. 

ii.  That  which  every  gentleman  (that  takes  any  care 
of  his  education)  desires  for  his  son,  besides  the  estate  he 
leaves  him,  is  contained,  I  suppose,  in  these  four  things, 
virtue,  wisdom,  breeding,  and  learning.  I  place  virtue  as 
the  first  and  most  necessary  of  those  endowments  that  be- 
long to  a  man  or  a  gentleman,  as  absolutely  requisite  to 
make  him  valued  and  beloved  by  others,  acceptable  or  tol- 
erable to  himself.  Without  that,  I  think,  he  will  be  happy 
neither  in  this  nor  the  other  world. 

Wisdom  I  take,  in  the  popular  acceptation,  for  a  man's 


286  JOHN  LOCKE 

managing  his  business  ably,  and  with  foresight,  in  this 
world.  This  is  the  product  of  a  good  natural  temper,  ap- 
plication of  mind,  and  experience  together;  and  so  above 
the  reach  of  children.  The  greatest  thing  that  in  them 
can  be  done  towards  it,  is  to  hinder  them,  as  much  as  may 
be,  from  being  cunning;  which,  being  the  ape  of  wisdom, 
is  the  most  distant  from  it  that  can  be.  To  accustom  a 
child  to  have  true  notions  of  things,  and  not  to  be  satisfied 
till  he  has  them;  to  raise  his  mind  to  great  and  worthy 
thoughts;  and  to  keep  him  at  a  distance  from  falsehood 
and  cunning,  which  has  always  a  broad  mixture  of  false- 
hood in  it,  is  the  fittest  preparation  of  a  child  for  wisdom. 

The  next  good  quality  belonging  to  a  gentleman  is  good- 
breeding.  There  are  two  sorts  of  ill-breeding:  the  one,  a 
sheepish  bashfulness ;  and  the  other,  a  misbecoming  negli- 
gence and  disrespect  in  our  carriage  —  both  which 
are  avoided  by  only  observing  this  one  rule:  Not  to 
think  meanly  of  ourselves,  and  not  to  think  meanly  of 
others. 

12.  You  will  wonder,  perhaps,  that  I  put  learning  last, 
especially  if  I 'tell  you  I  think  it  the  least  part.  This  may 
seem  strange  in  the  mouth  of  a  bookish  man :  and  this 
making  usually  the  chief,  if  not  only  bustle  and  stir  about 
children,  this  being  almost  that  alone  which  is  thought  on, 
when  people  talk  of  education,  makes  it  the  greater  para- 
dox. When  I  consider  what  ado  is  made  about  a  little  Latin 
and  Greek,  how  many  years  are  spent  in  it,  and  what  a 
noise  and  business  it  makes  to  no  purpose,  I  can  hardly 
forbear  thinking  that  the  parents  of  children  still  live  in 
fear  of  the  schoolmaster's  rod,  which  they  look  on  as  the 
only  instrument  of  education ;  as  if  a  language  or  two 
were  its  whole  business.  How  else  is  it  possible  that  a 
child  should  be  chained  to  the  oar  seven,  eight,  or  ten  of 
the  best  years  of  his  life,  to  get  a  language  or  two,  which 


SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE  287 

I  think  might  be  had  at  a  great  deal  cheaper  rate  of  pains 
and  time,  and  be  learned  almost  in  playing? 

13.  The  great  skill  of  a  teacher  is  to  get  and  keep  the 
attention  of  his  scholar:  whilst  he  has  that,  he  is  sure  to 
advance  as  fast  as  the  learner's  abilities  will  carry  him ;  and 
without  that,  all  his  bustle  and  pother  will  be  to  little  or 
no  purpose.    To  attain  this,  he  should  make  the  child  com- 
prehend (as  much  as  may  be)  the  usefulness  of  what  he 
teaches  him;  and  let  him  see,  by  what  he  has  learned,  that 
he  can  do  something  which  he  could  not  do  before;  some- 
thing which  gives  him  some  power  and   real   advantage 
above  others,  who  are  ignorant  of  it.    To  this  he  should  add 
sweetness  in  all  his  instructions ;  and  by  a  certain  tender- 
ness in  his  whole  carriage,  make  the  child  sensible  that  he 
loves  him,  and  designs  nothing  but  his  good;  the  only  way 
to  beget  love  in  the  child,  which  will  make  him  hearken 
to  his  lessons,  and  relish  what  he  teaches  him. 

14.  When,  by  interlining  Latin  and  English  one  with 
another,  he  has  got  a  moderate  knowledge  of  the  Latin 
tongue,  he  may  then  be  advanced  a  little  further  to  the 
reading  of  some  other  easy  Latin  book,  such  as  Justin,  or. 
Eutropius;  and  to  make  the  reading  and  understanding  of 
it  the  less  tedious  and  difficult  to  him,  let  him  help  himself, 
if  he  please,  with  the  English  translation.     Nor  let  the  ob- 
jection,  that  he   will   then   know   it   only   by   rote,    fright 
any  one.     This,  when  well  considered,  is  not  of  any  mo- 
ment against,  but  plainly  for,  this  way  of  learning  a  lan- 
guage; for  languages  are  only  to  be  learned  by  rote;  and 
a  man,  who  does  not  speak  English  or  Latin  perfectly  by 
rote,  so  that  having  thought  of  the  thing  he  would  speak 
of,  his  tongue  of  course,  without  thought  of  rule  or  gram- 
mar, falls  into  the  proper  expression  and  idiom  of  that  lan- 
guage, does  not  speak  it  well,  nor  is  master  of  it.     And 
I  would  fain  have  any  one  name  to  me  that  tongue,  that 


288  JOHN  LOCKE 

any  one  can  learn  or  speak  as  he  should  do,  by  the  rules  of 
grammar.  Languages  were  made  not  by  rules  or  art,  but 
by  accident,  and  the  common  use  of  the  people.  And  he 
that  will  speak  them  well,  has  no  other  rule  but  that;  nor 
anything  to  trust  to  but  his  memory,  and  the  habit  of  speak- 
ing after  the  fashion  learned  from  those  that  are  allowed  to 
speak  properly,  which,  in  other  words,  is  only  to  speak 
by  rote. 

It  will  possibly  be  asked  here,  Is  grammar  then  of  no 
use?  And  have  those  who  have  taken  so  much  pains  in 
reducing  several  languages  to  rules  and  observations,  who 
have  writ  so  much  about  declensions  and  conjugations, 
about  concords  and  syntaxis,  lost  their  labor,  and  been 
learned  to  no  purpose  ?  I  say  not  so ;  grammar  has  its  place 
too.  But  this  I  think  I  may  say,  there  is  more  stir  a  great 
deal  made  with  it  than  there  needs,  and  those  are  tormented 
about  it,  to  whom  it  does  not  at  all  belong ;  I  mean  children, 
at  the  age  wherein  they  are  usually  perplexed  with  it  in 
grammar-schools. 

15.  Since  it  is  English  that  an  English  gentleman  will 
have  constant  use  of,  that  is  the  language  he  should  chiefly 
cultivate,  and  wherein  most  care  should  be  taken  to  polish 
and  perfect  his  style.  To  speak  or  write  better  Latin  than 
English  may  make  a  man  be  talked  of;  but  he  would  find 
it  more  to  his  purpose  to  express  himself  well  in  his  own 
tongue,  that  he  uses  every  moment,  than  to  have  the  vain 
commendation  of  others  for  a  very  insignificant  quality. 
This  I  find  universally  neglected,  and  no  care  taken  any- 
where to  improve  young  men  in  their  own  language,  that 
they  may  thoroughly  understand  and  be  masters  of  it.  If 
any  one  among  us  have  a  facility  or  purity  more  than  or- 
dinary in  his  mother-tongue,  it  is  owing  to  chance,  or  his 
genius,  or  anything,  rather  than  to  his  education,  or  any 
care  of  his  teacher.  To  mind  what  English  his  pupil  speaks 


SELECTIONS  FROM  JOHN  LOCKE  289 

or  writes,  is  below  the  dignity  of  one  bred  up  amongst 
Greek  and  Latin,  though  he  have  but  little  of  them  him- 
self. These  are  the  learned  languages,  fit  only  for  learned 
men  to  meddle  with  and  teach ;  English  is  the  language  of 
the  illiterate  vulgar;  though  yet  we  see  the  policy  of  some 
of  our  neighbors  hath  not  thought  it  beneath  the  public 
care  to  promote  and  reward  the  improvement  of  their  own 
language. 

1 6.  This  is,  in  short,  what  I  have  thought  concerning 
a  young  gentleman's  studies ;  wherein  it  will  possibly  be 
wondered,  that  I  should  omit  Greek,  since  amongst  the  Gre- 
cians is  to  be  found  the  original,  as  it  were,  and  foundation 
of  all  that  learning  which  we  have  in  this  part  of  the  world. 
I  grant  it  so;  and  will  add,  that  no  man  can  pass  for  a 
scholar  that  is  ignorant  of  the  Greek  tongue.     But  I  am 
not  here  considering  the  education  of  a  professed  scholar, 
but  of  a  gentleman,  to  whom  Latin  and  French,  as  the 
world  now  goes,  is  by  every  one  acknowledged  to  be  nec- 
essary.   When  he  comes  to  be  a  man,  if  he  has  a  mind  to 
carry  his  studies  further,  and  look  into  the  Greek  learning, 
he  will  then  easily  get  that  tongue  himself ;  and  if  he  has 
not  that  inclination,  his  learning  of  it  under  a  tutor,  will 
be  but  lost  labor,  and  much  of  his  time  and  pains  spent  in 
that,  which  will  be  neglected  and  thrown  away,  as  soon  as 
he  is  at  liberty.     For  how  many  are  there  of  an  hundred, 
even  amongst  scholars  themselves,  who  retain  the  Greek 
they  carried  from  school ;  or  ever  improve  it  to  a  familiar 
reading,  and  perfect  understanding  of  Greek  authors? 

17.  Order  and  constancy  are  said  to  make  the  great  dif- 
ference between  one  man  and  another ;  of  this  I  am  sure, 
nothing  so  much  clears  a  learner's  way,  helps  him  so  much  on 
in  it,  and  makes  him  go  so  easy  and  so  far  in  any  inquiry,  as 
a  good  method.     His  governor  should  take  pains  to  make 
him  sensible  of  this,  accustom  him  to  order,  and  teach  him 

PAINTER   FED.   Ess. — 19 


2QO  JOHN  LOCKE 

method  in  all  the  applications  of  his  thought;  show  him 
wherein  it  lies,  and  the  advantages  of  it ;  acquaint  him  with 
the  several  sorts  of  it,  either  from  general  to  particulars, 
or  from  particulars  to  what  is  more  general;  exercise  him 
in  both  of  them ;  and  make  him  see  in  what  cases  each  dif- 
ferent method  is  most  proper,  and  to  what  ends  it  best 
serves. 

In  history  the  order  of  time  should  govern ;  in  philosoph- 
ical inquiries,  that  of  nature,  which  in  all  progression  is 
to  go  from  the  place  one  is  then  in,  to  that  which  joins  and 
lies  next  to  it ;  and  so  it  is  in  the  mind,  from  the  knowledge 
it  stands  possessed  of  already,  to  that  which  lies  next,  and 
is  coherent  to  it ;  and  so  on  to  what  it  aims  at,  by  the  sim- 
plest and  most  uncompounded  parts  it  can  divide  the  mat- 
ter into.  To  this  purpose,  it  will  be  of  great  use  to  his 
pupil  to  accustom  him  to  distinguish  well,  that  is,  to  have 
distinct  notions,  wherever  the  mind  can  find  any  real  differ- 
ence; but  as  carefully  to  avoid  distinctions  in  terms,  where 
he  has  not  distinct  and  different  clear  ideas. 


xix.  F£NELON. 

BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

This  celebrated  ecclesiastic  and  teacher  was  born  in  the 
province  of  Perigord,  August  6,  1651.  From  an  early  age 
he  was  remarkable  for  his  industry,  his  amiable  disposi- 
tion, and  his  thirst  for  knowledge.  Up  to  the  age  of  twelve 
his  education  was  conducted  at  home ;  he  was  then  sent  to 
Cahors,  and  two  years  later  to  Paris,  where  his  course  of 
instruction  was  completed.  Destined  to  the  clerical  office 
by  his  family,  and  inclined  toward  it  by  natural  gifts  and 
disposition,  he  entered  the  theological  seminary  of  Saint- 
Sulpice,  and  won  general  esteem  by  his  application,  ability, 
and  exemplary  character.  He  was  ordained  priest  at  the 
age  of  twenty-four,  and  four  years  later  he  was  placed  over 
an  institution  in  Paris  designed  for  the  instruction  of  young 
women  who  had  renounced  the  Protestant  faith.  He  spent 
ten  years  of  his  life  as  director  of  this  institution,  and  it 
was  while  in  charge  of  it  that  he  wrote  his  excellent  and 
famous  treatise  on  the  "  Education  of  Girls." 

After  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  Fenelon  was 
placed  at  the  head  of  a  mission  that  was  sent  to  Poitou  to 
labor  among  the  Protestant  portion  of  the  population.  He 
fulfilled  the  trying  duties  of  this  office  with  gentleness  and 
toleration;  and  such  was  the  affability  of  his  manners  and 
the  charm  of  his  discourse  that  his  labors  were  not  unat- 
tended with  success.  In  the  words  of  Antonin  Roche,  "  No 
person  was  more  capable  than  he  of  rendering  virtue  at- 
tractive by  that  touching  and  effective  language  which  ad- 

291 


292  FENELON 

dresses  itself  to  the  heart  and  inspires  confidence.  To  this 
precious  gift  he  joined  the  merit  of  giving  his  instructions 
that  simple,  clear,  and  agreeable  form  that  placed  them 
within  reach  of  all  minds." 

In  1689  he  was  appointed  tutor  to  the  young  Duke  of 
Burgundy,  grandson  of  Louis  XIV.  This  young  prince 
was  endowed  with  fine  natural  abilities,  but  possessed  of 
an  inordinate  pride  and  a  furious  temper.  This  rendered 
Fenelon 's  task  exceedingly  difficult,  but  he  discharged  its 
duties  with  rare  wisdom  and  surprising  success.  Under 
his  skilful  and  affectionate  instruction,  the  young  prince 
developed  the  virtues  of  patience,  self-control,  and  kindly 
consideration.  As  aids  to  his  instruction  Fenelon  composed 
fables,  compiled  histories,  and  wrote  fiction,  particularly 
"  Telemachus,"  which  holds  a  permanent  place  in  the  classic 
literature  of  France.  A  brilliant  future  was  predicted  for 
this  young  duke,  but  unfortunately  death  intervened  to  pre- 
vent its  realization. 

In  1695  Fenelon  was  elevated  to  the  archbishopric  of 
Cambray  in  recognition  of  his  distinguished  ability  and  serv- 
ice. He  devoted  himself  conscientiously  to  the  duties  of  his 
diocese.  He  led  a  life  of  great  simplicity,  and  divided  his 
time  between  the  administration  of  affairs  and  the  personal 
instruction  of  his  flock.  Though  he  had  delighted  the 
French  court  by  his  eloquence,  and  had  embarrassed  Bos- 
suet  by  his  learning  and  force  of  argument,  yet  he  found 
pleasure  in  going  through  the  villages  of  his  diocese  to  teach 
the  simple  peasantry  the  catechism  in  language  suited  to 
their  uncultured  condition. 

The  later  years  of  his  life  were  rendered  unhappy  by 
theological  controversies,  by  the  displeasure  of  the  king, 
and  by  the  loss  of  his  dearest  friends.  His  disappointments 
and  sorrows  were  grievous,  but  he  bore  them  with  touching 
resignation.  "  He  died,"  says  Lamartine,  "  like  a  saint  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  293 

poet,  listening  to  the  sweetest  and  sublimest  hymns,  which 
carried  at  the  same  time  his  imagination  and  his  soul  to 
heaven."  His  death  occurred  January  7,  1715. 

Fenelon's  "  Education  of  Girls,"  which  was  published  in 
1 68 1,  has  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  systematic  and 
comprehensive  treatise  ever  written  on  the  subject.  It  con- 
sists of  thirteen  chapters,  the  first  two  of  which  here  follow 
without  abridgment.  From  the  remaining  chapters  such 
passages  are  given  as  will  present  Fenelon's  views  in  toler- 
able completeness.  As  will  be  seen,  he  may  be  regarded  as 
an  advocate  of  the  higher  education  of  woman,  "  fully  recog- 
nizing the  influence  she  exerts  in  the  home  and  in  society." 
In  this  he  belongs  to  the  list  of  modern  educational  reform- 
ers. But  his  views  are  somewhat  limited  by  his  belief  that 
woman  is  intellectually  inferior  to  man,  and  by  his  funda- 
mental principle  that  her  education  should  be  restricted  to 
the  practical  needs  of  domestic  life.  In  addition  to  specific 
recommendations  as  to  study  and  methods,  the  treatise  is 
rich  in  general  pedagogical  principles  of  great  insight  and 
wisdom. 

"  We  have  today,"  says  Paroz  in  his  Histoire  Universelle 
de  la  Pedagogic,  "  educational  works  that  are  more  complete 
and  systematic,  but  this  one  will  live  because  of  its  excellent 
spirit  and  beautiful  style.  In  all  ages  and  in  every  land 
it  will  be  read  with  pleasure  and  profit.  Of  all  the  Catholic 
clergy  who  have  engaged  in  educational  work,  Fenelon  has 
perhaps  approached  nearest  to  the  rational  principles  which 
form  the  basis  of  modern  pedagogy.  The  order  of  nature 
has  a  place  in  his  theology,  and  he  knows  how  to  reconcile 
the  needs  of  temporal  life  with  the  spirit  of  Christianity. 
This  characteristic  will  always  assign  him  a  high  rank 
among  educators." 


294  F&NELON 

SELECTION  FROM  FE*NELON. 

THE   EDUCATION   OF   GIRLS. 

The  Importance  of  the  Education  of  Girls. 

I;  Nothing  is  more  neglected  than  the  education  of  girls. 
Custom  and  the  caprice  of  mothers  frequently  decide  every- 
thing: people  suppose  that  they  ought  to  give  but  little  in- 
struction to  this  sex.  The  education  of  boys  passes  for  one 
of  the  principal  concerns  of  life  through  its  relation  to  the 
public  weal ;  and  although  scarcely  fewer  mistakes  are  made 
than  in  the  education  of  girls,  people  are  at  least  persuaded 
that  much  intelligence  is  needed  to  succeed  in  it.  The 
cleverest  people  have  endeavored  to  give  rules  in  this  matter. 
How  many  teachers  and  colleges  we  see!  What  expense 
for  the  printing  of  books,  for  the  researches  of  science,  for 
methods  of  learning  the  languages,  for  the  choice  of  profes- 
sors !  All  this  great  preparation  often  has  more  superficial- 
ity than  solidity ;  but  it  indicates  the  high  conception  people 
have  of  the  education  of  boys.  As  for  girls,  they  say,  it  is 
not  necessary  that  they  be  learned,  curiosity  renders  them 
vain  and  affected ;  it  is  enough  if  they  know  how  to  govern 
some  day  their  households,  and  to  obey  their  husbands  with- 
out question.  People  do  not  fail  to  refer  to  many  women 
whom  science  has  rendered  ridiculous :  after  which  they  be- 
lieve themselves  justified  in  blindly  abandoning  girls  to  the 
management  of  ignorant  and  indiscreet,  mothers. 

2.  It  is  true  that  we  should  fear  making  ridiculous 
scholars.  Women  ordinarily  have  minds  weaker  and  more 
inquisitive  than  men ;  thus  it  is  not  expedient  to  engage  them 
in  studies  that  might  turn  their  heads.  They  are  not  to 
govern  the  state,  make  war,  or  enter  the  sacred  ministry; 


SELECTION  FROM  F^NELON  295 

accordingly  they  can  dispense  with  certain  branches  of 
knowledge  which  belong  to  statecraft,  the  art  of  war,  juris- 
prudence, philosophy,  and  theology.  The  greater  part  of  the 
mechanic  arts  does  not  suit  them:  they  are  constituted  for 
moderate  exertion.  Their  bodies,  as  well  as  their  minds, 
are  less  strong  and  robust  than  those  of  men ;  in  return, 
nature  has  given  them  industry,  neatness,  and  economy,  to 
occupy  them  tranquilly  in  their  homes. 

3.  But   what    follows    from   this   natural    weakness    of 
women?     The  more  they  are  weak,  the  more  important  is 
it  to  make  them  strong.     Have  they  not  duties  to  perform, 
even  duties  which  form  the  foundation  of  all  human  life? 
Is  it  not  women  that  ruin  or  uphold  families,  that  regulate 
all  the  details  of  domestic  life,  and  that  decide,  consequently, 
what  touches  most  closely  the  whole  human  race?     In  that 
way  they  have  the  principal  part  in  the  good  or  the  bad 
manners  of  almost  the  entire  world.     A  judicious,  diligent, 
and  pious  wife  is  the  soul  of  a  great  household ;  she  intro- 
duces order  there  for  temporal  welfare  and  future  salvation. 
Even  men,  who  have  all  authority  in  public,  can  not,  by  their 
deliberations,  establish  any  efficient  good,  if  women  do  not 
aid  them  to  execute  it. 

4.  The  world  is  not  a  phantom;  it  is  the  union  of  all 
the  families :  and  who  can  govern  them  with  a  nicer  care 
than  women  who,  besides  their  natural  authority  and  their 
diligence  in  the  household,  have  still  the  advantage  of  being 
born  painstaking,  attentive  to  details,  industrious,  winning, 
and  persuasive?     Can  men  themselves  hope  for  any  happi- 
ness in  life,  if  their  most  intimate  relation,  which  is  that  of 
marriage,  turns  to  bitterness?     And  what  will  become  of 
the  children,  who  are  later  to  constitute  the  human  race, 
if  their  mothers  spoil  them  from  infancy  ? 

5.  These,  then,  are  the  occupations  of  women,  which  are 
scarcely  less  important  to  the  public  than  those  of  men, 


296  FENELON 

since  they  have  households  to  regulate,  husbands  to  make 
happy,  and  children  to  bring  up  well.  Add  to  this  that 
virtue  is  no  less  for  women  than  for  men ;  without  speaking 
of  the  good  or  ill  they  can  do  to  the  public,  they  are  the  half 
of  the  human  race,  redeemed  by  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  destined  to  eternal  life. 

6.  Finally,  we  must  consider,  besides  the  good  which 
women  do  when  they  are  well  brought  up,  the  evil  which  they 
cause   in  the   world   when   they   lack   an   education   which 
inspires  them  with  virtue.     It  is  unquestionable  that  the 
bad  education  of  women  does  more  harm  than  that  of  men, 
since  the  disorders  of  men  often  come  both  from  the  evil 
training  which  they  have  received  from  their  mothers,  and 
from  the  passions  which  other  women  have  inspired  in  them 
at  a  more  advanced  age.     What  intrigues  are  presented  to 
us  in  history,  what  overturnings  of  laws  and  manners,  what 
bloody  wars,  what  innovations  in  religion,  what  revolutions 
in  the  state,  caused  by  the  profligacy  of  women !     These  are 
the  considerations  that  prove  the  importance  of  giving  girls 
a  good  education :  let  us  seek  the  means  of  doing  so. 

Defects  of  the  Prevailing  Education. 

7.  A  girl's  ignorance  is  the  cause  that  she  grows  weary, 
and  that  she  does  not  know  how  to  employ  herself  innocently. 
When  she  has  reached  a  certain  age  without  applying  herself 
to  solid  things,  she  has  neither  a  taste  nor  regard  for  them; 
all  that  is  serious  appears  to  her  sad,  all  that  demands  sus- 
tained attention  fatigues  her;  the  inclination  to  pleasure, 
which  is  strong  in  youth,  the  examples  of  persons  of  the 
same  age  who  are  plunged  in  amusements  —  all  serves  to 
make  her  fear  a  regulai  and  laborious  life.     At  this  early  age 
she  lacks  the  experience  and  authority  to  manage  anything  in 
the  house  of  her  parents ;  she  does  not  even  know  the  im- 


SELECTION  FROM  FENELON  297 

portance  of  applying  herself  to  it,  unless  her  mother  has 
taken  care  to  instruct  her  in  detail.  If  she  is  of  rank,  she 
is  exempt  from  the  work  of  her  hands :  she  will  work  there- 
fore only  some  hour  of  the  day,  because  people  say,  without 
knowing  why,  that  it  is  proper  for  women  to  work;  but 
often  it  will  be  only  a  pretense,  and  she  will  not  become 
accustomed  to  continuous  employment. 

8.  In  this  condition  what  will  she  do?     The  companion- 
ship of  a  mother  who  watches  her,  who  scolds  her,  who 
thinks  she  is  bringing  her  up  properly  by  overlooking  noth- 
ing, who  is  reconciled  with  her,  who  makes  her  endure  her 
whims,  and  who  always  appears  burdened  with  domestic 
cares,  offends  and  repels  her ;  she  has  around  her  flattering 
women,  who  seek  to  insinuate  themselves  into  her  regard 
by  base  and  dangerous  attentions,  follow  all  her  idle  fancies, 
and  entertain  her  with  all  that  can  disgust  her  with  the  good : 
piety  seems  to  her  a  tiresome  business  —  a  rule  hostile  to 
every  pleasure.     With  what  will  she  occupy  herself?     With 
nothing  useful.     This  heedlessness  will  even  turn  into  an 
incurable  habit. 

9.  Meanwhile  there  is  a  great  vacancy,  which  one  can 
not  hope  to  fill  with  solid  things ;  it  is  necessary,  therefore, 
that  frivolous  things  take  their  place.     In  this  inactivity  a 
girl  gives  herself  up  to  idleness ;  and  idleness,  which  is  a 
languor  of  the  soul,  is  an  inexhaustible  source  of  weariness. 
She  accustoms  herself  to  sleep  a  third  more  than  would  be 
needful  to  keep  her  in  perfect  health ;  this  large  amount  of 
sleep  serves  only  to  enervate  her,  to  make  her  more  delicate, 
more  exposed  to  bodily  ills:  while  moderate  sleep,  accom- 
panied by  regular  exercise,  renders  a  person  cheerful,  vig- 
orous and  strong  —  a  thing  which  undoubtedly  tends  to  the 
true  perfection  of  the  body,  not  to  speak  of  its  advantages 
to  the  mind.     This  effeminacy  and  indolence,  being  joined 
to  ignorance,  beget  a  pernicious  desire  for  diversions  and 


298  F&NELON 

plays;  they  excite  an  inconsiderate  and  insatiable  curiosity. 

10.  Persons  who  are  educated  and  engaged  in  serious 
employments,   have  ordinarily  only  a  moderate  curiosity : 
what  they  know  gives  them  a  contempt  for  many  things  that 
they  do  not  know ;  they  see  the  uselessness  and  folly  of  most 
of  the  things  which  little  minds  that  know  nothing  and  have 
nothing  to  do,  are  eager  to  learn. 

On  the  contrary,  girls  who  are  badly  educated  and  indo- 
lent, always  have  a  wandering  imagination.  For  lack  of 
solid  nourishment,  their  curiosity  ardently  turns  toward  vain 
and  dangerous  objects.  Those  who  have  cleverness  often 
become  affected,  and  read  all  the  books  that  can  feed  their 
vanity;  they  become  passionately  fond  of  novels,  comedies, 
and  fantastic  adventures,  in  which  sexual  love  has  a  place. 
They  develop  a  visionary  spirit  of  accustoming  themselves 
to  the  magniloquent  language  of  romantic  heroes :  they  are 
even  spoiled  in  that  way  for  society ;  for  all  those  beautiful, 
high-flown  sentiments,  all  those  generous  passions,  all  those 
adventures  which  the  author  of  the  novel  has  invented  for 
pleasure,  have  no  connection  with  the  true  motives  that 
operate  in  the  world  and  decide  its  affairs,  nor  with  the 
disappointments  that  one  finds  in  all  that  one  undertakes. 

A  poor  girl,  full  of  the  tender  and  marvelous  incidents 
that  have  charmed  her  in  her  reading,  is  astonished  not  to 
find  in  society  real  persons  resembling  these  heroes:  she 
would  like  to  live  as  imaginary  princesses,  who  in  novels 
are  always  charming,  always  adored,  and  always  above  every 
need.  What  disgust  for  her  to  descend  from  this  heroism 
to  the  smallest  details  of  housekeeping! 

11.  Some  women  push  their  inquisitiveness  still  further, 
and  meddle  in  the  decision  of  religious  questions,  although 
they  lack  the  requisite  knowledge.     But  those  who  have  not 
sufficient  openness  of  mind  for  these  matters,  have  others 
that  are  suited  to  them :  they  ardently  desire  to  know  what 


SELECTION  PROM  FENELON  2& 

is  said,  what  is  done,  a  song,  a  bit  of  news,  an  intrigue; 
to  receive  letters,  to  read  those  that  others  receive ;  they  wish 
to  be  told  all,  and  also  to  tell  all ;  they  are  vain,  and  vanity 
talks  a  great  deal ;  they  are  frivolous,  and  frivolity  prevents 
the  thoughtfulness  which  would  often  keep  silent. 

Various  Principles  and  Recommendations. 

12.  It  is  necessary  to  be  content  with  following  and  aid- 
ing nature.     Children  know  but  little,  we  should  not  urge 
them  to  talk :  but  since  they  do  not  know  many  things,  they 
have  many  questions  to  ask.     It  is  sufficient  to  answer  them 
precisely,  and  to  add  sometimes  little  comparisons  in  order 
to  render  more  intelligible  the  explanations  that  one  is  to 
give  them.     If  they  express  a  judgment  of  something  with- 
out knowing  it  well,  it  is  needful  to  embarrass  them  by  some 
new  question,  in  order  to  make  them  feel  their  error,  without 
rudely  putting  them  to  confusion.     At  the  same  time  we 
should  let  them  see,  not  by  vague  praises,  but  by  some  prac- 
tical mark  of  esteem,  that  we  approve  them  much  more  when 
they  doubt  and  when  they  ask  what  they  do  not  know,  than 
when  they  decide  the  best.     This  is  the  true  means  of  im- 
parting to  their  minds,  with  much  politeness,  a  genuine 
modesty,  and  a  great  contempt  for  the  wranglings  that  are 
so  common  with  young  people  of  little  intelligence. 

13.  The  curiosity  of  children   is   a  natural   inclination 
which  goes  out  to  meet  instruction;  do  not  fail  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  it.     In  the  country,  for  example,  they  see  a  mill, 
and  wish  to  know  what  it  is ;  we  should  show  them  how  the 
food  that  nourishes  man  is  prepared.     They  observe  some 
harvesters,  and  it  is  necessary  to  explain  to  them  what  they 
are  doing,  how  grain  is  sowed,  and  how  it  multiplies  in  the 
earth.     In  the  city  they  see  shops  where  different  arts  are 
practiced,  and  where  different  articles  of  merchandise  are 


300  FZNELON 

sold.  -We  should  never  be  annoyed  by  their  questions ;  these 
are  openings  which  nature  offers  in  order  to  facilitate  in- 
struction :  express  a  pleasure  in  them ;  in  that  way  you  will 
gradually  teach  them  how  all  the  things  are  made  which 
are  of  use  to  man,  and  with  which  commerce  is  concerned. 
Little  by  little,  without  special  study,  they  will  learn  the 
best  way  to  make  everything  they  need,  and  the  just  value 
of  it,  which  is  the  true  foundation  of  economy.  This  knowl- 
edge, which  ought  to  be  despised  by  no  one,  since  everybody 
has  need  to  estimate  his  expense,  is  chiefly  necessary  to  girls. 

14.  We  have  remarked   that   the  brain   of  children   is 
altogether  warm  and  moist,  a  fact  that  gives  them  continual 
movement.     By  reason  of  this  softness  of  the  brain  every- 
thing is  easily  impressed  upon  it,  and  the  images  of  all 
sensible  objects  are  very  vivid :  hence  we  should  make  haste 
to   write   on   their   minds   while  the   characters   are   easily 
formed  there.     But  we  should  chose  well  the  images  that 
we  are  to  engrave  there;  for  we  should  pour  into  so  small 
and  precious  a  receptacle  only  exquisite  things:  we  should 
remember  that  we  ought,  at  that  age,  to  pour  into  minds 
only  what  we  desire  to  remain  there  for  life.     The  first 
impressions  made  while  the  brain  is  still  soft,  and  nothing 
is  written  there,  are  the  most  profound.     Besides  they  harden 
as   age  dries  the  brain ;   hence   they  become   ineffaceable : 
whence  it  happens  that  when  one  is  old,  one  distinctly  re- 
members the  things  of  youth,  although  far  distant,  while 
one  recollects  less  clearly  what  has  been  seen  at  a  more 
advanced  age,  because  the  impressions  have  been  made  upon 
the  brain  when  it  was  hardened  and  full  of  other  images. 

15.  At  the  same  time  it  is  necessary  to  seek  every  means 
to  render  agreeable  to  the  child  what  you  demand  of  her. 
If  you  have  something  unpleasant  to  propose,  let  her  under- 
stand that  the  pain  will  be  soon  followed  by  pleasure ;  show 
her  always  the  utility  of  the  things  you  teach  her ;  make  her 


SELECTION  FROM  FENELON  301 

see  their  use  in  relation  to  society  and  the  duties  of  her  sta- 
tion. Without  that,  study  will  seem  to  her  an  abstract, 
fruitless,  and  painful  toil.  Of  what  use  is  it,  they  will  say 
to  themselves,  to  learn  all  these  things  which  people  do  not 
talk  about  in  conversation,  and  which  have  no  relation  to 
what  we  are  obliged  to  do?  It  is  necessary,  therefore,  to 
give  them  a  reason  for  what  we  teach  them.  It  is  to 
enable  you,  you  will  say  to  them,  to  do  well  what  you  will 
have  to  do  some  day;  it  is  to  form  your  judgment;  it  is  to 
accustom  you  to  reason  correctly  about  all  the  affairs  of  life. 
We  should  always  show  them  a  substantial  and  agreeable 
end  which  will  sustain  them  in  their  labor,  and  never  pretend 
to  bring  them  into  subjection  by  a  base  and  absolute 
authority. 

16.  Note  a  great  fault  in  the  prevailing  education:  we 
put  all  the  pleasure  on  one  side,  and  all  the  irksomeness  on 
the  other ;  all  the  irksomeness  in  study,  and  all  the  pleasure 
in  amusement.     What  can  a  child  do  but  bear  this  rule  im- 
patiently, and  ardently  run  after  games? 

Let  us  endeavor  then  to  change  this  order:  let  us  render 
study  agreeable,  let  us  conceal  it  under  the  appearance  of 
liberty  and  pleasure;  let  us  allow  children  sometimes  to  in- 
terrupt their  studies  with  little  flights  of  amusement;  they 
have  need  of  these  distractions  in  order  to  rest  their  minds. 

17.  Let  us  come  now  to  the  things  in  which  a  woman 
ought  to  be  instructed.     What  are  her  employments?     She 
is  charged  with  the  education  of  her  children ;  with  the  boys 
up  to  a  certain  age,  with  the  girls  till  they  are  married  or 
enter  a  convent ;  with  the  management  of  servants,  with 
their  manners  and  duties ;  with  the  details  of  expense,  with 
the  means  of  doing  everything  economically  and  honorably ; 
and  ordinarily  even  with  directing  the  estate  and  receiving 
its  revenues. 

The  learning  of  women,  as  that  of  men,  ought  to  be  re- 


302  F&NELON 

stricted  to  knowledge  relating  to  their  duties ;  the  difference 
of  their  employments  should  make  that  of  their  studies.  It 
is  necessary  therefore  to  limit  the  instruction  of  women  to 
the  things  we  have  just  mentioned.  But  an  acquisitive 
woman  will  find  that  this  is  giving  very  narrow  bounds  to 
her  desire  for  knowledge ;  she  is  mistaken ;  it  is  because  she 
does  not  know  the  importance  and  the  extent  of  the  things 
in  which  I  propose  to  have  her  instructed. 

18.  Though  the  difficulty  of  finding  governesses  is  great, 
we  must  confess  that  there  is  another  still  greater ;  it  is  that 
of  the  irregularity  of  parents:  all  the  rest  is  useless,  unless 
they  are  willing  to  cooperate  themselves  in  the  work.  The 
foundation  of  all  is  that  they  give  their  children  only  cor- 
rect maxims  and  edifying  examples.  It  is  what  one  can  hope 
for  only  in  a  very  small  number  of  families.  In  most  homes 
we  see  only  confusion,  change,  a  crowd  of  wrong-headed 
servants,  and  disagreement  of  master  and  mistress.  What 
a  frightful  school  for  children !  Often  a  mother  who  passes 
her  life  at  cards,  at  the  theater,  and  in  unbecoming  conver- 
sation, complains  in  a  grave  tone  that  she  can  not  find  a 
governess  capable  of  educating  her  daughters.  But  what 
can  the  best  education  do  with  girls  in  view  of  such  a 
mother  ? 


XX.     CHARLES  ROLLIN. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Charles  Rollin  was  a  distinguished  historian  and  educator. 
He  is  known  in  America  chiefly  through  his  "  Ancient  His- 
tory," which  a  few  decades  ago  was  widely  disseminated 
among  our  people.  Though  exhibiting  a  wide  acquaintance 
with  ancient  writers,  who  are  freely  quoted,  this  work  has 
been  superseded  in  recent  years  by  more  critical  histories. 

Rollin  was  born  in  Paris,  January  30,  1661.  He  was  the 
son  of  a  poor  cutler,  who  intended  to  train  up  his  son  to  the 
same  trade;  but  happily  the  boy's  talents  were  discovered 
by  a  Benedictine  friar,  who  had  him  sent  to  the  College  du 
Plessis.  He  made  rapid  progress  in  his  studies,  especially 
in  rhetoric  and  literature.  Later  he  studied  theology  at  the 
Sorbonne,  the  most  celebrated  of  the  Roman  Catholic  sem- 
inaries of  France. 

In  1688  he  became  professor  of  eloquence  in  the  College 
of  France.  He  encouraged  the  study  of  the  French  lan- 
guage and  literature,  and  revived  an  interest  in  the  ancient 
tongues,  particularly  in  Greek.  In  1694  he  was  appointed 
rector  of  the  University  of  Paris,  and  signalized  his  brief 
tenure  of  two  years  by  the  introduction  of  salutary  reforms. 
A  few  years  later  he  was  placed  at  the  head  of  the  College 
of  Beauvais,  where  his  great  reputation  soon  filled  the  de- 
serted halls  with  students.  But  his  life,  notwithstanding  his 
eminence  and  piety,  was  not  suffered  to  run  smoothly.  His 
adherence  to  Jansenism  brought  upon  him  the  persecution 
of  the  Jesuits,  and  in  1712  he  was  forced  to  resign  his 
office. 

303 


304  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

In  1720  he  was  called  from  his  modest  and  busy  retirement 
to  assume  again  the  management  of  the  University  as  rector. 
Six  years  later  he  published  his  famous  "  Treatise  on 
Studies,"  or,  as  the  title  of  the  book  reads,  "  The  Method 
of  Teaching  and  Studying  the  Belles-Lettres."  Apart  from 
his  own  varied  experience,  Rollin  drew  his  materials  largely 
from  Plato,  Aristotle,  and  especially  from  Quintilian  and 
Seneca;  but  he  profited  also  from  the  pedagogical  labors  of 
his  contemporaries.  Fenelon  in  particular  is  frequently 
quoted. 

The  four  volumes  of  the  "  Treatise  on  Studies  "  discusses 
in  successive  books  the  education  of  young  children,  the 
learning  of  languages,  poetry,  rhetoric,  eloquence,  history, 
and  philosophy.  It  is  the  most  comprehensive  work  on 
pedagogy  that  was  written  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Its 
great  value  was  soon  recognized,  and  translations  of  it  were 
made  into  several  foreign  languages,  including  the  English. 

The  following  extract,  with  some  unimportant  omissions, 
constitutes  Part  First  of  Book  VI.,  which  is  devoted  to  a 
discussion  of  "  the  government  of  classes  and  colleges." 
Part  Second  of  this  book  is  devoted  to  "  particular  duties 
relating  to  the  education  of  youth,"  such  as  the  diet  of 
students,  their  studies,  college  discipline,  religion,  etc.  The 
extract  is  remarkable  for  the  emphasis  it  places  on  the  moral 
and  religious  side  of  education,  while  its  lofty  aims  and 
noble  spirit  are  worthy  of  the  high  commendation  the 
"  Treatise  on  Studies  "  has  received. 

SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN. 

GENERAL    INSTRUCTIONS    UPON    THE    EDUCATION    OF    YOUTH. 

The  education  of  youth  has  been  always  considered  by 
the  great  philosophers  and  the  most  famous  lawgivers  as 
the  most  certain  source  of  the  tranquillity  and  happiness  both 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  305 

of  private  families  and  of  states  and  empires.  For  what 
else,  in  short,  is  a  republic  or  kingdom,  but  a  large  body, 
whose  health  and  strength  depend  upon  those  of  private 
families,  which  are  the  members  and  parts  of  it,  and  none 
of  which  can  fail  in  the  discharge  of  their  function,  but  the 
whole  body  must  be  sensible  of  it?  Now  what  is  it  but 
good  education  which  enables  all  the  citizens  and  great  men, 
and  princes  above  the  rest,  to  perform  their  different  func- 
tions in  a  deserving  manner?  Is  it  not  evident  that  youth 
are  as  the  nursery  of  the  state?  That  it  is  renewed  and 
perpetuated  by  them  ?  That  from  among  them  all  the  fath- 
ers of  families,  all  magistrates  and  ministers,  in  a  word,  all 
persons  placed  in  authority  and  power  are  taken?  And  is 
it  not  certain  that  the  good  education  of  those  who  are  one 
day  to  fill  those  places,  will  have  an  influence  over  the  whole 
body  of  the  state,  and  become,  in  a  manner,  the  spirit  and 
general  character  of  the  whole  nation? 

ARTICLE  I. — What  End  We  Should  Propose  to  Ourselves 
in  Education. 

If  we  consult  our  reason  ever  so  little,  it  is  easy  to  discern 
that  the  end  which  masters  should  have  in  view  is  not  barely 
to  teach  their  scholars  Greek  and  Latin,  to  teach  them  to 
make  exercises  and  verses,  to  charge  their  memory  with 
facts  and  historical  dates,  to  draw  up  syllogisms  in  form, 
or  to  trace  lines  and  figures  upon  paper.  These  branches  of 
learning  I  own  are  useful  and  valuable,  but  as  means  and 
not  as  the  end ;  when  they  conduct  us  to  other  things,  and  not 
when  we  stop  at  them;  when  they  serve  us  as  preparation 
and  instruments  for  better  knowledge,  without  which  the 
rest  would  be  useless.  Youth  would  have  cause  to  complain, 
if  they  were  condemned  to  spend  eight  or  ten  of  the  best 
years  of  their  life  in  learning,  at  a  great  expense  and  with 

PAINTER  FED.   Ess. — 20 


3o6  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

incredible  pains,  one  or  two  languages,  and  some  other 
matters  of  a  like  nature,  which  perhaps  they  would  seldom 
have  occasion  to  use.  The  end  of  masters  in  the  long  course 
of  their  studies  is  to  habituate  their  scholars  to  serious  appli- 
cation of  mind,  to  make  them  love  and  value  the  sciences, 
and  to  cultivate  in  them  such  a  taste  as  shall  make  them 
thirst  after  them  when  they  have  gone  from  school ;  to  point 
out  the  method  of  attaining  them,  and  to  make  them  thor- 
oughly sensible  of  their  use  and  value;  and  by  that  means 
dispose  them  for  the  different  employments  to  which  it 
shall  please  God  to  call  them.  Besides  this,  the  end  of 
masters  should  be  to  improve  their  hearts  and  understand- 
ings, to  protect  their  innocence,  to  inspire  them  with  prin- 
ciples of  honor  and  probity,  to  train  them  up  to  good  habits, 
to  correct  and  subdue  in  them  by  gentle  means  the  ill  inclina- 
tions they  shall  be  observed  to  have,  such  as  pride,  insolence, 
an  high  opinion  of  themselves,  and  a  saucy  vanity  contin- 
ually employed  in  depreciating  others,  a  blind  self-love,  solely 
attentive  to  its  own  advantage,  a  spirit  of  raillery  which  is 
pleased  with  offending  and  insulting  others,  an  indolence 
and  sloth  which  render  all  the  good  qualities  of  the  mind 
useless. 

ARTICLE  II. — To  Study  the  Character  of  Children  in  Order 
to  be  Able  to  Manage  Them  Well. 

Education,  properly  speaking,  is  the  art  of  managing  and 
forming  the  mind.  Of  all  sciences  it  is  the  most  difficult, 
the  most  extraordinary,  and  at  the  same  time  the  most 
important,  but  yet  not  sufficiently  studied.  To  judge  of 
it  by  common  experience  one  would  say  that  of  all  animals 
man  is  the  most  untractable. 

The  master's  first  care  is  thoroughly  to  study  and  search 
into  the  genius  and  character  of  the  children,  for  by  this  he 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  307 

must  regulate  his  conduct.  There  are  some  who  are  lazy 
and  remiss,  unless  they  are  continually  called  upon,  and 
others  can  not  bear  to  be  treated  imperiously ;  some  will  be 
restrained  by  fear,  and  others  on  the  contrary  discouraged. 
We  can  gain  nothing  out  of  some  but  by  mere  labor  and 
application ;  and  others  will  study  only  by  fits  and  starts : 
to  endeavor  to  bring  them  all  to  a  level,  and  make  them 
submit  to  one  and  the  same  rule  is  to  attempt  to  force  nature. 
The  prudence  of  the  master  will  consist  in  keeping  a  medium, 
equally  removed  from  the  two  extremes;  for  here  the  ill 
so  closely  borders  upon  the  good,  that  it  is  easy  to  mistake 
the  one  for  the  other,  and  it  is  this  which  renders  the  man- 
agement of  youth  so  difficult.  Too  much  liberty  makes  way 
for  licentiousness ;  and  too  much  constraint  makes  them 
stupid ;  commendation  excites  and  encourages,  but  it  also 
inspires  vanity  and  presumption.  We  must  therefore  keep 
a  just  temper,  and  hold  an  even  hand  between  these  two 
extremes. 

Children  carry  within  them  the  principles,  and  in  a  manner 
the  seeds  of  all  virtues  and  vices ;  and  the  principal  point 
is  thoroughly  to  study  at  first  their  genius  and  character, 
to  become  acquainted  with  their  humor,  their  disposition, 
and  talents ;  and  above  all,  to  discover  their  passions  and 
prevailing  inclinations ;  not  with  a  view  or  expectation  of 
entirely  changing  their  temper,  of  making  him  gay,  for 
instance,  who  is  naturally  grave,  or  him  serious  who  is  of 
a  lively  and  cheerful  disposition.  It  is  with  certain  charac- 
ters, as  with  personal  defects,  they  may  be  somewhat  im- 
proved, but  not  absolutely  cured.  Now  the  way  of  growing 
acquainted  in  this  manner  with  children  is  to  give  them 
great  liberty  to  discover  their  inclinations  whilst  young,  to 
let  them  follow  their  natural  bent,  in  order  to  discern  it 
the  better;  to  comply  with  their  little  infirmities,  to  encour- 
age them  to  let  us  see  them;  to  observe  them  whilst  they 


308  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

think  least  of  it,  especially  at  their  play,  when  they  show 
their  tempers  most;  for  children  are  naturally  plain  and 
without  reserve ;  but  as  soon  as  they  think  themselves  taken 
notice  of,  they  throw  themselves  under  a  restraint,  and  keep 
upon  their  guard. 

ARTICLE  III. — To  Assume  an  Immediate  Authority  over 

Children. 

This  maxim  is  of  the  utmost  moment  during  their  whole 
education,  and  for  all  persons  who  are  charged  with  it.  By 
authority  I  mean  a  certain  air  and  ascendant  which  imprint 
respect  and  procure  obedience.  It  is  neither  age  nor  stature, 
the  tone  of  the  voice,  nor  threatening,  by  which  this  au- 
thority is  to  be  obtained :  but  an  even,  firm,  moderate  dis- 
position of  mind,  which  is  always  master  of  itself,  is  guided 
only  by  reason,  and  never  acts  by  fancy  or  passion. 

It  is  this  qualification  and  talent  which  keeps  all  in  order, 
establishes  an  exact  discipline,  sees  what  commands  are  ob- 
served, saves  the  trouble  of  reprimands,  and  prevents  almost 
all  punishments.  Now  it  is  from  the  very  first  entrance 
upon  their  government  that  parents  and  masters  should 
assume  this  ascendant.  If  they  do  not  seize  upon  this 
favorable  moment,  and  possess  themselves  early  of  this 
authority,  they  will  have  all  the  pains  in  the  world  to  do  it 
afterwards,  and  the  child  will  domineer  at  last. 

The  first  care  of  a  pupil  who  is  put  under  a  new  master, 
is  to  study  and  sound  him.  There  is  nothing  he  does  not 
attempt,  he  spares  no  industry  or  artifice  to  get  the  better 
of  him  if  he  can.  When  he  sees  all  his  pains  and  cunning 
are  to  no  purpose,  and  that  the  master  calmly  and  quietly 
opposes  them  with  a  gentle  and  reasonable  resolution,  which 
always  ends  in  making  himself  obeyed,  he  then  yields,  and 
cheerfully  submits,  and  this  kind  of  little  war,  or  rather 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  309 

skirmish,  where  on  both  sides  they  have  tried  each  other's 
forces,  is  happily  concluded  with  a  peace  and  good  under- 
standing which  make  them  easy  all  the  rest  of  the  time  they 
are  to  live  together. 

ARTICLE  IV. — To  Make  Oneself  Beloved  and  Feared. 

The  respect,  upon  which  the  authority  I  have  spoken  of  is 
founded,  includes  two  things,  fear  and  love,  which  lend  each 
other  a  mutual  assistance,  and  are  the  two  great  springs 
and  hinges  of  all  government  in  general,  and  of  the  conduct 
of  children  in  particular.  As  they  are  of  an  age  wherein 
reason,  instead  of  having  the  superiority,  scarce  begins  to 
show  itself,  it  is  requisite  that  fear  should  sometimes  be 
called  in  to  its  assistance  and  take  its  place ;  but  if  it  comes 
alone,  and  the  allurement  of  pleasure  does  not  follow  close 
at  its  heels,  it  is  not  long  regarded,  and  its  instructions 
produce  but  a  slight  effect,  which  the  hope  of  impunity  soon 
removes.  Hence  it  comes  to  pass  that  in  point  of  education 
the  greatest  skill  lies  in  knowing  how  to  blend  discreetly 
together  a  force,  which  shall  keep  children  within  due  bounds 
without  discouragement,  and  a  mildness  which  shall  gain 
upon  them  without  indulging  them  too  much. 

But  some  will  say,  though  this  manner  of  governing 
children  by  kindness  and  gentleness  is  easy  perhaps  to  a 
private  tutor,  is  it  practicable  in  the  case  of  a  principal 
of  a  college,  a  regent  of  a  class,  or  a  master  who  has  a 
great  many  scholars  in  one  common  chamber?  And  how 
is  it  possible  in  all  these  places  to  keep  up  an  exact  discipline, 
without  which  no  good  is  to  be  expected,  and  at  the  same 
time  to  gain  the  love  of  the  scholars?  I  own  that  nothing 
is  more  difficult  in  this  circumstance  than  to  keep  up  a  just 
medium  betwixt  too  great  severity  and  an  excessive  in- 
dulgence ;  but  the  thing  is  not  impossible,  since  we  see  it 


310  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

practiced  by  persons  who  have  the  uncommon  talent  of 
making  themselves  feared,  and  still  more  beloved.  The 
whole  depends  upon  the  behavior  of  the  masters.  If  they 
are  such  as  they  should  be,  their  success  will  answer  their 
desires. 

ARTICLE  V. —  Of  Correction. 

The  most  common  and  shortest  way  of  correcting  children 
is  by  the  rod,  which  is  almost  the  only  remedy  that  is  known 
or  made  use  of  by  those  who  are  entrusted  with  the  educa- 
tion of  youth.  But  this  remedy  becomes  often  a  more  dan- 
gerous evil  than  those  they  would  cure,  if  employed  out 
of  season  or  beyond  measure.  For  besides  that  the  cor- 
rections of  the  rod  and  the  lash  we  are  now  speaking  of, 
have  something  unbecoming,  mean,  and  servile  in  them, 
they  have  nothing  in  themselves  to  remedy  any  fault  com- 
mitted, nor  is  it  likely  that  such  a  correction  may  become 
useful  to  a  child,  if  the  shame  of  suffering  for  having  done 
ill  has  not  a  greater  power  over  his  mind,  than  the  punish- 
ment itself.  Besides,  these  corrections  give  an  incurable 
aversion  to  the  things  we  should  endeavor  to  make  them 
love.  They  do  not  change  the  humor  nor  work  any  refor- 
mation in  the  natural  disposition,  but  only  restrain  it  for  a 
time,  and  serve  to  make  the  passions  break  out  with  more 
violence,  when  they  are  at  liberty.  They  often  stupefy  the 
mind,  and  harden  it  in  evil.  For  a  child  that  has  so  little 
honor  as  to  be  insensible  to  reproof,  will  accustom  himself 
to  blows  like  a  slave,  and  grow  obstinate  against  punishment. 

Must  we  therefore  conclude  that  we  ought  never  to  make 
use  of  this  sort  of  correction?  That  is  not  my  meaning. 
For  I  am  far  from  condemning  in  general  the  use  of  the  rod, 
after  what  has  been  said  of  it  in  several  places  of  Scripture, 
and  especially  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs;  .  .  .  but  it 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  311 

ought  to  be  employed  very  seldom,  and  for  faults  of  con- 
sequence. These  corrections  are  like  the  violent  remedies 
which  are  used  in  violent  diseases:  they  purge,  but  alter 
the  constitution  and  wear  out  the  organs.  A  mind  con- 
ducted by  fear  is  always  the  weaker  for  it.  Whoever,  there- 
fore, has  the  direction  of  others,  if  he  would  heal,  should 
first  use  gentle  remonstrances,  try  what  he  can  do  by  per- 
suasion, make  honesty  and  justice  grateful  if  possible,  and 
inspire  a  hatred  for  vice,  and  a  passion  for  virtue.  If  this 
first  attempt  does  not  succeed,  he  may  pass  to  stronger 
methods  and  sharper  reproaches;  and  lastly,  when  all  this 
has  been  employed  to  no  purpose,  he  may  then  proceed  to 
corrections,  but  by  degrees,  still  leaving  the  hopes  of  pardon 
in  view,  and  reserving  the  greatest  for  extreme  faults  and 
those  he  despairs  of. 

ARTICLE  VI. —  Of  Reproofs. 

To  make  reproofs  useful,  there  are  in  my  opinion  three 
things  principally  to  be  considered,  the  subject,  the  time,  and 
the  manner  of  making  them. 

i.  It  is  a  very  common  mistake  to  use  reprimand  for 
the  slightest  faults,  and  such  as  are  almost  unavoidable 
in  children,  which  takes  away  all  their  force,  and  frustrates 
all  their  advantage.  For  they  accustom  themselves  to  them, 
are  no  longer  affected  by  them,  and  even  make  a  jest  of 
them. 

But  I  make  a  great  difference  between  admonitions  and 
reprimands.  The  first  savor  less  of  the  authority  of  a  mas- 
ter than  of  the  affection  of  a  friend.  They  are  always 
attended  with  an  air  and  tone  of  gentleness,  which  gives 
them  a  more  agreeable  reception ;  and  for  this  reason  they 
may  be  more  frequently  used.  But  as  reprimands  always 
shock  self-love,  and  often  assume  an  air  and  a  language 


312  CHARLES  ROLL1N 

of  severity,  they  should  be  reserved  for  more  considerable 
faults,  and  consequently  be  more  seldom  used. 

2.  The  master's  prudence  consists  in  carefully  studying 
and  watching  for  the  favorable  moment,  when  the  mind  of 
the  child  shall  be  most  disposed  to  improve  by  correction. 
Do  not,  therefore,  reprimand  a  child,  says  Fenelon,  in  his 
first  emotion,  or  your  own.     If  you  do  it  in  yours,  he  will 
find  that  you  have  been  governed  by  humor  and  inclination, 
and  not  by  reason  and  friendship,  and  you  will  inevitably 
lose  your  authority.     If  you   chide   him   immediately,   his 
mind  is  not  at  liberty  enough  to  own  his  faults,  to  conquer 
his  passion  and  perceive  the  importance  of  your  advice. 
You  likewise  expose  the  child  to  losing  the  respect  he  owes 
you.     Show  him  always  that  you  are  master  of  yourself; 
and  nothing  will  let  him  see  it  better  than  your  patience. 
Watch  a  favorable  opportunity  for  several  days,  if  necessary, 
to  time  a  correction  well. 

3.  Corrections  and  reprimands  set  before  men  what  they 
care  not  for  seeing,  and  attack  self-love  in  the  dearest  and 
most  sensible  part,  where  it  never  gives  way  without  great 
reluctance  and  opposition.     We  love  ourselves  as  we  are, 
and  would  have  reason  for  doing  so.     Thus  we  are  careful 
to  justify  ourselves  in  our  faults  by  various  deceitful  colors; 
and  it  must  not  seem  strange  that  men  should  be  displeased 
with  being  contradicted  and  condemned,  as  it  is  an  attack 
at  the  same  time  upon  the  reason  which  is  deceived,  and  the 
heart  which  is  corrupted. 

This  is  properly  the  foundation  of  the  care  and  caution 
which  are  required  in  correction  and  reprimand.  We  must 
leave  nothing  for  a  child  to  discern  in  us  that  may  hinder 
the  effect  of  it.  We  must  avoid  raising  his  ill  will  by  the 
severity  of  our  expressions,  his  anger  by  exaggerations,  or 
his  pride  by  expressions  of  contempt. 

We  must  not  heap  upon  him  such  a  multitude  of  reproofs. 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  3'3 

/ 

as  may  deprive  him  of  the  hope  of  being  able  to  correct  the 
faults  he  is  reproached  with.  It  might  be  advisable  like- 
wise not  to  tell  a  child  his  faults  without  adding  some  means 
of  amending  it.  For  correction  when  it  is  sharp,  is  apt 
to  occasion  chagrin  and  discouragement. 

We  must  avoid  giving  him  any  occasion  to  think  that  we 
are  prejudiced,  lest  he  should  thence  take  occasion  to  defend 
the  faults  laid  to  his  charge,  and  to  attribute  our  admoni- 
tions to  our  prejudice.  Neither  must  there  be  any  room  left 
for  him  to  believe  that  they  are  occasioned  by  any  interest 
or  particular  passion,  or  indeed  any  other  motive  than  that 
of  his  good. 

ARTICLE  VII. — To  Reason  with  Children;  to  Prompt  Them 
by  the  Sense  of  Honor;  to  Make  Use  of  Praises,  Re- 
wards, and  Caresses. 

I  call  reasoning  with  boys  the  acting  always  without  pas- 
sion and  humor,  and  giving  them  the  reason  of  our  behavior 
toward  them.  It  is  requisite,  says  Fenelon,  to  pursue  all 
possible  means  to  make  the  things  you  require  of  them 
agreeable  to  children.  Have  you  anything  displeasing  to 
propose  to  them?  Let  them  know  that  the  pain  will  soon 
be  followed  by  pleasure;  show  them  always  the  usefulness 
of  what  ^ou  teach  them ;  let  them  see  its  advantage  in  regard 
to  the  commerce  of  the  world  and  the  duties  of  particular 
stations.  This,  say  to  them,  is  to  enable  you  to  do  well  what 
you  are  one  day  to  do;  it  is  to  form  your  judgment,  it  is 
to  accustom  you  to  reason  well  upon  all  the  affairs  of  life. 
It  is  requisite  to  show  them  a  solid  and  agreeable  end,  which 
may  support  them  in  their  labor,  and  never  pretend  to  oblige 
them  to  the  performance  by  a  dry,  absolute  authority. 

Children  are  capable  of  hearing  reason  sooner  than  is 
imagined,  and  they  love  to  be  treated  like  reasonable  crea- 


3I4  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

tures  from  their  infancy.  We  should  keep  up  in  them  this 
good  opinion  and  sense  of  honor,  upon  which  they  pique 
themselves,  and  make  use  of  it,  as  much  as  possible,  as  a 
universal  means  to  bring  them  to  the  end  we  propose. 

They  are  likewise  very  much  affected  with  praise.  It  is 
our  duty  to  make  an  advantage  of  this  weakness,  and  to 
endeavor  to  improve  it  into  a  virtue  in  them.  We  should 
run  a  risk  of  discouraging  them,  were  we  never  to  praise 
them  when  they  do  well ;  and  though  we  have  reason  to  ap- 
prehend that  commendations  may  inflame  their  vanity,  we 
must  strive  to  use  them  for  their  encouragement  without 
making  them  conceited. 

For  of  all  the  motives  that  affect  a  reasonable  soul,  there 
are  none  more  powerful  than  honor  and  shame;  and  when 
we  have  once  brought  children  to  be  sensible  of  these  feel- 
ings, we  have  gained  everything. 

Rewards  for  children  are  not  to  be  neglected ;  and  though 
they  are  not,  any  more  than  praises,  the  principal  motive 
upon  which  they  should  act,  yet  both  of  them  may  become 
useful  to  virtue,  and  be  a  powerful  incentive  to  it.  Is  it 
not  an  advantage  for  them  to  know  that  the  doing  well  will, 
in  every  respect,  be  their  advantage,  and  that  it  is  as  well 
their  interest  as  their  duty  to  execute  faithfully  what  is  re- 
quired of  them  either  in  point  of  study  or  behavior. 

ARTICLE  VIII. — To  Accustom  Children  to  a  Strict  Observ- 
ance of  Truth. 

One  of  the  vices  we  must  carefully  correct  in  children 
is  lying,  for  which  we  can  not  excite  in  them  too  great  an 
aversion  and  horror.  It  must  always  be  represented  to  them 
as  mean,  base,  and  shameful;  as  a  vice  which  entirely  dis- 
honors a  man,  disgraces  him,  and  places  him  in  the  most 
contemptible  light,  and  is  not  to  be  suffered  even  in  slaves. 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  315 

Dissimulation,  cunning,  and  bad  excuses  come  very  near  it., 
and  infallibly  lead  to  it. 

Everything  that  the  children  see  or  hear  from  their  pa- 
rents or  masters  must  conduce  to  make  them  in  love  with 
truth,  and  give  them  a  contempt  for  all  double  dealing. 
Thus  they  must  never  make  use  of  any  false  pretenses  to 
appease  them,  or  to  persuade  them  to  do  as  they  would 
have  them,  or  either  promise  or  threaten  any  thing  without 
their  being  sensible  that  the  performance  will  soon  follow. 
For  by  this  means  they  will  be  taught  deceit,  to  which  they 
have  already  too  much  inclination. 

To  prevent  it,  they  must  be  accustomed  not  to  stand  in 
need  of  it,  and  be  taught  to  tell  ingenuously  what  pleases 
them  or  what  makes  them  uneasy.  They  must  be  told  that 
tricking  always  proceeds  from  a  bad  disposition ;  for  nobody 
uses  it  but  with  a  view  to  dissemble;  as  not  being  such  a 
one  as  he  ought  to  be,  or  from  desiring  such  things  as  are 
not  to  be  permitted;  or  if  they  are,  from  taking  dishonest 
means  to  come  at  them.  Let  the  children  be  made  to  observe 
how  ridiculous  such  arts  are,  as  they  see  practiced  by  others, 
which  have  generally  a  bad  success,  and  serve  only  to  make 
them  contemptible.  Make  them  ashamed  of  themselves, 
when  you  catch  them  in  any  dissimulation.  Take  from 
them  from  time  to  time  what  they  are  fond  of,  if  they  have 
endeavored  to  obtain  it  by  any  deceit,  and  tell  them  they 
shall  have  it,  when  they  ask  for  it  plainly  and  without 
artifice. 

ARTICLE  IX. — To  Accustom  Boys  to  be  Polite,  Cleanly,  and 

Punctual. 

Good  breeding  is  one  of  the  qualities  which  parents  most 
desire  in  theii  children,  and  it  usually  affects  them  more 
than  any  other.  The  value  they  set  upon  it  arises  from 


316  CHARLES  ROLL1N 

their  conversation  with  the  world,  where  they  find  that  al- 
most everything  is  judged  by  its  outside.  In  short,  the  want 
of  politeness  takes  off  very  much  from  the  most  solid 
merit,  and  makes  virtue  itself  seem  less  estimable  and 
lovely.  A  rough  diamond  can  never  serve  as  an  ornament ; 
it  must  be  polished  before  it  can  be  shown  to  advantage. 
We  can  not,  therefore,  take  care  too  early  to  make  children 
civil  and  well  bred. 

It  is  also  to  be  wished  that  children  should  be  accustomed 
to  neatness,  order,  and  exactness ;  that  they  take  care  of  their 
dress,  especially  on  Sundays  and  holidays,  and  such  days 
as  they  go  abroad;  that  everything  should  be  set  in  order 
in  their  chambers  and  upon  their  tables,  and  every  book  put 
in  its  place,  when  they  have  done  with  it;  that  they  should 
be  ready  to  discharge  their  different  duties  precisely  at  the 
time  appointed.  This  exactness  is  of  great  importance  at 
all  times  and  in  every  station  of  life. 

ARTICLE  X. — To  Make  Study  Agreeable. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  important  points  in  education, 
and  at  the  same  time  one  of  the  most  difficult:  for  among 
a  great  number  of  masters,  who  in  other  respects  are  very 
deserving,  there  are  very  few  to  be  found  who  are  happy 
enough  to  make  their  scholars  fond  of  study.  Success  in 
this  point  depends  very  much  on  the  first  impressions,  and 
it  should  be  the  great  care  of  masters,  who  teach  children 
their  letters,  to  do  it  in  such  a  manner  that  a  child  who  is 
not  yet  capable  of  being'  fond  of  his  book,  should  not 
take  an  aversion  to  it,  and  the  dislike  continue  when  he 
grows  up. 

The  great  secret,  says  Quintilian,  to  make  children  love 
their  books  is  to  make  them  fond  of  their  master.  In  this 
case  they  willingly  give  ear  to  him,  become  docile,  strive  to 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  317 

please  him  and  take  a  pleasure  in  his  lessons.  They  readily 
receive  his  advice  and  correction,  are  much  affected  by  his 
commendation,  and  strive  to  merit  his  friendship  by  a  proper 
discharge  of  their  duty.  There  is  implanted  in  children, 
as  in  all  mankind,  a  natural  spirit  of  curiosity,  or  desire  of 
knowledge  and  information,  of  which  a  good  use  may  be 
made  towards  rendering  their  study  agreeable.  As  every- 
thing is  new  to  them,  they  are  continually  asking  questions, 
and  inquiring  the  name  and  use  of  everything  they  see. 
And  they  should  be  answered  without  expressing  any  pain 
or  uneasiness.  Their  curiosity  should  be  commended  and 
satisfied  by  clear  and  express  answers,  without  anything  in 
them  deceitful  or  illusory ;  for  they  will  soon  find  it  out  and 
take  offense  at  it. 

This  great  principle  must  be  always  in  view:  that  study 
depends  upon  the  will,  which  admits  of  no  constraint.  We 
may  confine  the  body,  make  a  scholar  sit  at  his  desk  against 
his  inclination,  double  his  labor  by  way  of  punishment, 
force  him  to  finish  a  task  imposed  on  him,  and  for  that  end 
deprive  him  of  his  play  and  recreation ;  but  can  laboring 
thus  from  force  be  properly  called  study?  And  what  will 
follow  upon  it  but  the  hatred  both  of  books,  learning,  and 
masters  too,  very  often  as  long  as  they  live?  The  will, 
therefore,  must  be  gained ;  and  this  can  only  be  by  mildness, 
affectionate  behavior,  and  persuasion,  and  above  all  by  the 
allurement  of  pleasure. 

ARTICLE  XL — To  Grant  the  Boys  Rest  and  Recreation. 

A  great  many  reasons  oblige  us  to  grant  rest  and  recrea- 
tion to  children ;  first,  the  care  of  their  health,  which  should 
go  before  that  of  knowledge.  Now  nothing  is  more  prejudi- 
cial to  it  than  too  long  and  constant  an  application,  which 
insensibly  wears  and  weakens  the  organs,  which  in  that  age 


3i8  CHARLES  ROLLIN 

are  very  tender,  and  incapable  of  taking  great  pains.  And 
this  gives  me  an  opportunity  of  advising  and  entreating 
parents  not  to  push  their  children  too  much  in  study  in 
their  early  years,  but  to  deny  themselves  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  them  make  a  figure  before  their  time.  For  besides 
that  these  ripe  fruits  seldom  come  to  maturity,  and  their 
early  progress  resembles  those  seeds  that  are  cast  upon  the 
surface  of  the  earth,  which  spring  up  immediately,  but  take 
no  root,  nothing  is  more  pernicious  to  the  health  of  children 
than  these  untimely  efforts,  though  the  ill  effect  be  not  im- 
mediately perceived. 

If  they  are  prejudicial  to  the  body,  they  are  no  less  dan- 
gerous to  the  mind,  which  exhausts  itself  and  grows  dull 
by  a  continual  application,  and,  like  the  earth,  stands  in 
need  of  a  stated  alternation  of  labor  and  rest,  in  order  to 
preserve  its  force  and  vigor.  Besides,  the  boys,  after  they 
have  refreshed  themselves  a  while,  return,  to  their  studies 
with  more  cheerfulness  and  a  better  heart;  and  this  little 
relaxation  animates  them  with  fresh  courage ;  whereas  con- 
straint shocks  and  disheartens  them.  I  add  with  Quintilian, 
and  the  boys  will  doubtless  agree  to  it,  that  a  moderate 
inclination  to  play  should  not  displease  in  them,  as  it  is  often 
a  mark  of  vivacity.  In  short,  can  we  expect  much  ardor 
for  study  in  a  child  who  at  an  age  that  is  naturally  brisk 
and  gay,  is  always  heavy,  pensive,  and  indifferent  even  to 
its  play? 

But  in  this,  as  in  everything  else,  we  must  use  discretion, 
and  observe  a  medium,  which  consists  in  not  refusing  them 
diversion,  lest  they  should  grow  out  of  love  with  study; 
and  in  not  granting  too  much,  lest  they  should  contract  a 
habit  of  idleness. 


SELECTION  FROM  ROLLIN  319 

ARTICLE  XII. — To  Train  up  Boys  to  Virtue  by  Discourse 
and  Example. 

What  I  have  said  shows  that  this  is  the  indispensable  duty 
of  teachers.  As  it  is  often  requisite  to  fortify  children 
beforehand  against  the  example  and  discourses  of  their 
parents,  as  well  as  against  the  false  prejudices  and  false 
principles  advanced  in  common  conversation,  and  authorized 
by  an  almost-  general  practice,  they  should  be  to  them  that 
guardian  and  monitor  which  Seneca  so  often  speaks  of,  to 
preserve  or  deliver  them  from  popular  errors,  and  to  inspire 
them  with  such  principles  as  are  conformable  to  right  and 
sound  reason. 

It  is  requisite,  therefore,  that  they  have  a  perfect  sense  of 
them  themselves,  and  think  and  talk  always  with  wisdom 
and  truth.  For  nothing  can  be  said  before  children  without 
effect,  and  they  regulate  their  fears  and  desires  by  the  dis- 
courses they  hear. 

There  is  still  another  shorter  and  surer  way  of  conducting 
boys  to  virtue,  and  this  is  by  example.  For  the  language  of 
actions  is  far  stronger  and  more  persuasive  than  that  of 
words.  It  is  a  great  happiness  for  boys  to  have  masters, 
whose  lives  are  a  continual  instruction  to  them,  whose  ac- 
tions never  contradict  their  lessons,  who  do  what  they 
advise,  and  shun  what  they  blame,  and  who  are  still  more 
admired  when  seen  than  when  they  are  heard. 

ARTICLE  XIII. — Piety,  Religion,  and  Zeal  for  the  Children's 

Salvation. 

Christianity  is  the  soul  and  sum  of  all  the  duties  I  have 
hitherto  spoken  of.  It  is  Christianity  which  animates  them, 
which  exalts  and  ennobles  them,  which  brings  them  to  per- 
fection, and  gives  them  a  merit,  whereof  God  alone  is  the 


320  CHARLES  ROLL1N 

principle  and  motive,  and  of  which  God  alone  can  be  the 
just  reward. 

What  then  is  a  Christian  teacher,  who  is  entrusted  with 
the  education  of  youth?  He  is  a  man,  into  whose  hands 
Christ  has  committed  a  number  of  children  whom  he  has 
redeemed  with  his  blood,  and  for  whom  he  has  laid  down 
his  life,  in  whom  he  dwells,  as  in  his  house  and  temple ; 
whom  he  considers  as  his  members,  as  his  brethren  and 
coheirs,  of  whom  he  will  make  so  many  kings  and  priests, 
who  shall  reign  and  serve  God  with  him  and  by  him  to  all 
eternity.  And  for  what  end  has  he  committed  them  to  his 
care?  Is  it  barely  to  make  them  poets,  orators,  and  men 
of  learning?  Who  dares  presume  to  say  or  even  to  think 
so?  He  has  committed  them  to  the  master's  care  in  order 
to  preserve  in  them  the  precious  and  inestimable  deposit 
of  innocence,  which  he  has  imprinted  in  their  souls  by  bap- 
tism, in  order  to  make  them  true  Christians.  This  is  the 
true  end  and  design  of  the  education  of  children,  to  which 
all  the  rest  are  but  means.  Now  how  great  and  noble  an 
addition  does  the  office  of  a  master  receive  from  so  hon- 
orable a  commission?  But  what  care,  what  attention  and 
vigilance,  and  above  all,  how  great  a  dependence  upon  Christ 
does  it  require  1 


XXL    JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

There  are  few  men  who  have  exerted  a  greater  influence 
upon  education  than  the  celebrated  French  author,  Jean 
Jacques  Rousseau.  He  was  born  in  Geneva  June  28,  1712, 
and  died  at  Ermenonville,  near  Paris,  July  2,  1778.  As  a 
child  he  was  very  fond  of  reading,  a  disposition  that  was 
encouraged  by  his  father;  and  among  other  works,  many 
of  which  were  worthless,  he  early  devoured  Bossuet,  Ovid, 
and  Plutarch.  "  Thus  began  to  be  formed  within  me,"  he 
says,  "  that  heart,  at  once  so  proud  and  so  tender,  that  effem- 
inate but  yet  indomitable  character  which,  ever  oscillating 
between  weakness  and  courage,  between  indulgence  and  vir- 
tue, has  to  the  last  placed  me  in  contradiction  with  myself, 
and  has  brought  it  to  pass  that  abstinence  and  enjoyment, 
pleasure  and  wisdom,  have  alike  eluded  me."  In  these  few 
words  Rousseau  has  admirably  sketched  the  main  features  of 
his  character. 

It  is  not  worth  while  to  follow  him  through  the  unimpor- 
tant events  of  his  life.  His  boyhood  was  characterized  by 
a  singular  waywardness ;  and  in  his  "  Confessions,"  a  work 
written  with  the  utmost  frankness,  he  does  not  attempt  to 
conceal  lying  and  theft.  He  ran  away  from  an  engraver  to 
whom  he  had  been  apprenticed,  and  during  the  remainder  of 
his  life  he  was  a  wanderer  who  enjoyed  but  temporary  sea- 
sons of  repose.  His  life  was  a  singular  paradox.  "  Full 
of  enthusiasm  for  the  beautiful  and  the  good,"  says  a  French 
writer,  "  he  defended  with  invincible  logic  and  passionate 

PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 21  321 


322  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

eloquence  the  eternal  principles  of  justice  and  morality,  and 
he  committed  the  most  shameful  and  culpable  acts.  This 
man,  who  wrote  admirable  pages  upon  domestic  affection, 
friendship,  and  gratitude,  chose  a  companion  unworthy  of 
him,  placed  his  children  in  a  foundling  hospital,  and  showed 
himself  unjust  and  harsh  toward  his  friends,  and  ungrate- 
ful toward  his  benefactors." 

Rousseau  has  exerted  his  influence  upon  educational  de- 
velopment through  a  single  work,  half  treatise  and  half  ro- 
mance, to  which  all  subsequent  educators  —  Basedow,  Pes- 
talozzi,  Richter,  Kant,  and  even  Herbert  Spencer  —  have 
been  more  or  less  indebted.  It  is,  as  he  himself  says,  "  a 
collection  of  thoughts  and  observations,  without  order  and 
almost  without  connection."  It  is  entitled  "  fimile,  or  con- 
cerning Education."  In  many  respects  a  radical  book,  it  is 
flung  defiantly  in  the  face  of  prevalent  usage.  "  Go  directly 
contrary  to  custom,"  he  says,  "  and  you  will  nearly  always 
be  right."  The  work  was  condemned  by  parliament,  and  to 
escape  arrest,  Rousseau  fled  to  Switzerland.  The  work 
abounds  in  mingled  truth  and  error,  and  needs  to  be  read 
with  great  discrimination ;  but  many  of  its  truths  are  funda- 
mental, and  ever  since  their  publication  have  been  gradually 
forcing  an  entrance  into  educational  practice.  "  Not  Rous- 
seau's individual  rules,"  says  the  great  German  Richter, 
"  many  of  which  may  be  erroneous  without  injury  to  the 
whole,  but  the  spirit  of  education  which  fills  and  animates 
the  work,  has  shaken  to  their  foundations  and  purified  all 
the  schoolrooms,  and  even  the  nurseries,  in  Europe.  In 
no  previous  work  on  education  was  the  ideal  so  richly  and 
beautifully  combined  with  actual  observation  as  in  his." 

Rousseau  was  largely  indebted  to  his  predecessors,  es- 
pecially to  Locke,  whom  he  frequently  quotes,  but  with 
whom  he  does  not  always  agree.  The  two  fundamental 
principles  which  have  perhaps  exerted  the  widest  influence 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  323 

are  these:  I.  Nature  is  to  be  studied  and  followed.  2. 
Education  is  an  unbroken  unity,  extending  from  early  child- 
hood to  maturity.  It  is  true  that  both  these  principles  had 
been  advocated  by  Comenius,  but  it  was  through  the  charm 
of  Rousseau's  work  that  they  made  a  deep  impression 
upon  the  educational  thinking  of  Europe.  Along  with  posi- 
tions wholly  indefensible,  he  urges,  in  admirable  style,  many 
of  the  reforms  that  have  become  commonplaces  in  the  edu- 
cation of  to-day. 

With  the  intention  of  following  nature,  Rousseau  carries 
fimile,  his  hero,  through  five  periods  of  development:  the 
first  embraces  his  infancy,  the  second  extends  to  his  twelfth 
year,  the  third  to  his  fifteenth,  the  fourth  to  his  twentieth, 
and  the  fifth  includes  his  marriage.  To  each  of  these  periods 
a  book,  sufficient  for  a  small  volume,  is  devoted,  setting  forth 
principles  and  methods  in  detail.  The  following  extracts 
consist  of  such  paragraphs  from  the  different  books  as  will 
give  a  clear  and  comprehensive  view  of  Rousseau's  system  of 
pedagogy. 

SELECTIONS  FROM   ROUSSEAU. 

ISMILE,    OR    CONCERNING    EDUCATION. 
BOOK   I. 

I.  We  are  born  weak,  we  need  strength;  we  are  born 
destitute  of  all  things,  we  need  assistance;  we  are  born 
stupid,  we  need  judgment.  All  that  we  have  not  at  our 
birth,  and  that  we  need  when  grown  up,  is  given  us  by  edu- 
cation. 

This  education  comes  to  us  from  nature  itself,  or  from 
other  men,  or  from  circumstances.  The  internal  develop- 
ment of  our  faculties  and  of  our  organs  is  the  education 
nature  gives  us ;  the  use  we  are  taught  to  make  of  this  devel- 


324  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

opment  is  the  education  we  get  from  other  men ;  and  what 
we  learn,  by  our  own  experience,  about  things  that  interest 
us,  is  the  education  of  circumstances. 

2.  In  the  natural  order  of  things,  all  men  being  equal,  the 
vocation  common  to  all  is  the  state  of  manhood;  and  who- 
ever is  well  trained  for  that,  cannot  fulfil  badly  any  vocation 
which  depends  upon  it.     Whether  my  pupil  be  destined  for 
the  army,  the  church,  or  the  bar,  matters  little  to  me.     Be- 
fore he  can  think  of  adopting  the  vocation  of  his  parents, 
nature  calls  upon  him  to  be  a  man.     How  to  live  is  the 
business  I  wish  to  teach  him.     On  leaving  my  hands  he  will 
not,  I  admit,  be  a  magistrate,  a  soldier,  or  a  priest ;  first  of 
all. he  will  be  a  man.     All  that  a  man  ought  to  be  he  can 
be,  at  need,  as  well  as  any  one  else  can.     Fortune  will  in 
vain  alter  his  position,  for  he  will  always  occupy  his  own. 

Our  real  study  is  that  of  the  state  of  man.  He  among  us 
who  best  knows  how  to  bear  the  good  and  evil  fortunes  of 
this  life  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  best  educated ;  whence  it  fol- 
lows that  true  education  consists  less  in  precept  than  in  prac- 
tice. We  begin  to  instruct  ourselves  when  we  begin  to  live ; 
our  education  commences  with  the  commencement  of  our 
life ;  our  first  teacher  is  our  nurse.  For  this  reason  the  word 
"  education  "  had  among  the  ancients  another  meaning  which 
we  no  longer  attach  to  it;  it  signified  nutriment. 

To  live  is  not  merely  to  breathe,  it  is  to  act.  It  is  to  make 
use  of  our  organs,  of  our  senses,  of  our  faculties,  of  all  the 
powers  which  bear  witness  to  us  of  our  own  existence.  He 
who  has  lived  most  is  not  he  who  has  numbered  the  most 
years,  but  he  who  has  been  most  truly  conscious  of  what 
life  is.  A  man  may  have  himself  buried  at  the  age  of  a 
hundred  years,  who  died  from  the  hour  of  his  birth.  He 
would  have  gained  something  by  going  to  his  grave  in  youth, 
if  up  to  that  time  he  had  only  lived. 

3.  But  let  mothers  only  vouchsafe  to  nourish  their  chil- 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  325 

dren,  and  our  manners  will  reform  themselves ;  the  feelings 
of  nature  will  re-awaken  in  all  hearts.  The  State  will  be 
repeopled;  this  chief  thing,  this  one  thing  will  bring  all  the 
rest  into  order  again.  The  attractions  of  home  life  present 
the  best  antidote  to  bad  morals.  The  bustling  life  of  little 
children,  considered  so  tiresome,  becomes  pleasant ;  it  makes 
the  father  and  the  mother  more  necessary  to  one  another, 
more  dear  to  one  another ;  it  draws  closer  between  them  the 
conjugal  tie.  When  the  family  is  sprightly  and  animated, 
domestic  cares  form  the  dearest  occupation  of  the  wife  and 
the  sweetest  recreation  of  the  husband.  Thus  the  correction 
of  this  one  abuse  would  soon  result  in  a  general  reform; 
nature  would  resume  all  her  rights.  When  women  are  once 
more  true  mothers,  men  will  become  true  fathers  and  hus- 
bands. 

4.  A  father,  when  he  brings  his  children  into  existence 
and  supports  them,  has,  in  so  doing,  fulfilled  only  a  third  part 
of  his  task.     To  the  human  race  he  owes  men;  to  society, 
men  fitted  for  society ;  to  the  State,  citizens.     Every  man  who 
can  pay  this  triple  debt,  and  does  not  pay  it  is  a  guilty  man ; 
and  if  he  pays  it  by  halves,  he  is  perhaps  more  guilty  still. 
He  who  cannot  fulfil  the  duties  of  a  father  has  no  right  to 
be  a  father.     Not  poverty,  nor  severe  labor,  nor  human  re- 
spect can  release  him  from  the  duty  of  supporting  his  chil- 
dren and  of  educating  them  himself.     Readers,  you  may  be- 
lieve my  words.     I  prophesy  to  any  one  who  has  natural  feel- 
ing and  neglects  these  sacred  duties, —  that  he  will  long  shed 
bitter  tears  over  this  fault,  and  that  for  those  tears  he  will 
find  no  consolation. 

5.  The  qualifications  of  a  good  tutor  are  very  freely  dis- 
cussed.    The  first  qualification  I  should  require  in  him,  and 
this  one  presupposes  many  others,  is,  that  he  shall  not  be 
capable  of  selling  himself.     There  are  employments  so  noble 
that  we  cannot  fulfil  them  for  money  without  showing  our- 


326  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

selves  unworthy  to  fulfill  them.  Such  an  employment  is 
that  of  a  soldier;  such  a  one  is  that  of  a  teacher.  Who, 
then,  shall  educate  my  child?  I  have  told  you  already, — 
yourself.  I  cannot !  Then  make  for  yourself  a  friend  who 
can.  I  see  no  other  alternative. 

A  teacher!  what  a  great  soul  he  ought  to  be!  Truly,  to 
form  a  man,  one  must  be  either  himself  a  father,  or  else 
something  more  than  human.  And  this  is  the  office  you 
calmly  entrust  to  hirelings  ! 

6.  In  this  outset  of  life,  while  memory  and  imagination 
are  still  inactive,  the  child  pays  attention  only  to  what  ac- 
tually affects  his  senses.     The  first  materials  of  his  knowl- 
edge are  his  sensations.     If,  therefore,  these  are  presented 
to  him  in  suitable  order,  his  memory  can  hereafter  present 
them  to  his  understanding  in  the  same  order.     But  as  he 
attends  to  his  sensations  only,  it  will  at  first  suffice  to  show 
him  very  clearly  the  connection  between  these  sensations, 
and  the  objects  which  give  rise  to  them.     He  is  eager  to 
touch   everything,   to   handle   everything.     Do   not   thwart 
this  restless  desire ;  it  suggests  to  him  a  very  necessary  ap- 
prenticeship.    It  is  thus  he  learns  to  feel  the  heat  and  cold- 
ness,   hardness    and    softness,   heaviness   and   lightness   of 
bodies;  to  judge  of  their  size,  their  shape,  and  all  their 
sensible  qualities,   by   looking,   by  touching,   by   listening; 
above  all,  by  comparing  the  results  of  sight  with  those  of 
touch,  estimating  with  the  eye  the  sensation  a  thing  produces 
upon  the  fingers. 

BOOK  II. 

7.  Far  from  taking  care  that  fimile  does  not  hurt  himself, 
I  shall  be  dissatisfied  if  he  never  does,  and  so  grows  up 
unacquainted  with  pain.     To  suffer  is  the  first  and  most  nec- 
essary thing  for  him  to  learn.     Children  are  little  and  weak, 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  327 

apparently  that  they  may  learn  these  important  lessons.  If 
a  child  fall  his  whole  length,  he  will  not  break  his  leg;  if  he 
strike  himself  with  a  stick,  he  will  not  break  his  arm ;  if  he 
lay  hold  of  an  edged  tool,  he  does  not  grasp  it  tightly,  and 
will  not  cut  himself  very  badly. 

Our  pedantic  mania  for  instructing  constantly  leads  us  to 
teach  children  what  they  can  learn  far  better  for  themselves, 
and  to  lose  sight  of  what  we  alone  can  teach  them.  Is  there 
anything  more  absurd  than  the  pains  we  take  in  teaching 
them  to  walk?  As  if  we  had  ever  seen  one,  who,  through 
his  nurse's  negligence,  did  not  know  how  to  walk  when 
grown !  On  the  contrary,  how  many  people  do  we  see  mov- 
ing awkwardly  all  their  lives  because  they  have  been  badly 
taught  how  to  walk! 

8.  O  men,  be  humane !  it  is  your  highest  duty ;  be  humane 
to  all  conditions  of  men,  to  every  age,  to  everything  not 
alien  to  mankind.     What  higher  wisdom  is  there  for  you 
than  humanity?     Love  childhood;  encourage  its  sports,  its 
pleasures,  its  lovable  instincts.     Who  among  us  has  not  at 
times  looked  back  with  regret  to  the  age  when  a  smile  was 
continually  on  our  lips,  when  the  soul  was  always  at  peace? 
Why  should  we  rob  these  little  innocent  creatures  of  the 
enjoyment  of  a  time  so  brief,  so  transient,  of  a  boon  so 
precious,  which  they  cannot  misuse?     Why  will  you  fill  with 
bitterness  and  sorrow  these  fleeting  years  which  can  no  more 
return  to  them  than  to  you  ?     Do  you  know,  you  fathers,  the 
moment  when  death  awaits  your  children?     Do  not  store 
up  for  yourselves  remorse,  by  taking  from  them  the  brief 
moments  nature   has   given   them.     As   soon   as   they   can 
appreciate  the  delights  of  existence,  let  them  enjoy  it.     At 
whatever  hour  God  may  call  them,  let  them  not  die  without 
having  tasted  life  at  all. 

9.  The  surest  way  to  make  a  child  unhappy  is  to  accus- 
tom him  to  obtain  everything  he  wants  to  have.     For  since 


328  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

his  wishes  multiply  in  proportion  to  the  ease  with  which 
they  are  gratified,  your  inability  to  fulfil  them  will  sooner 
or  later  oblige  you  to  refuse  in  spite  of  yourself,  and  this 
unwonted  refusal  will  pain  him  more  than  withholding  from 
him  what  he  demands.  At  first  he  will  want  the  cane  you 
hold ;  soon  he  will  want  your  watch ;  afterward  he  will  want 
the  bird  he  sees  flying,  or  the  star  he  sees  shining.  He 
will  want  everything  he  sees,  and  without  being  God  himself 
how  can  you  content  him  ? 

10.  Treat  your  pupil  as  his  age  demands.  From  the  first, 
assign  him  to  his  true  place,  and  keep  him  there  so  effectually 
that  he  will  not  try  to  leave  it.  Then,  without  knowing 
what  wisdom  is,  he  will  practice  its  most  important  lesson. 
Never,  absolutely  never,  command  him  to  do  a  thing,  what- 
ever it  may  be.  Do  not  let  him  even  imagine  that  you 
claim  any  authority  over  him.  Let  him  know  only  that  he 
is  weak  and  you  are  strong:  that  from  his  condition  and 
yours  he  is  necessarily  at  your  mercy.  Let  him  know  this  — 
learn  it  and  feel  it.  Let  him  early  know  that  upon  his 
haughty  neck  is  the  stern  yoke  nature  imposes  upon  man, 
the  heavy  yoke  of  necessity,  under  which  every  finite  being 
must  toil. 

In  this  way  you  will  make  him  patient,  even-tempered,  re- 
signed, gentle,  even  when  he  has  not  what  he  wants.  For  it 
is  in  our  nature  to  endure  patiently  the  decrees  of  fate,  but 
not  the  ill  will  of  others.  "  There  is  no  more,"  is  an  answer 
against  which  no  child  ever  rebelled  unless  he  believed  it 
untrue.  Besides,  there  is  no  other  way;  either  nothing  at 
all  is  to  be  required  of  him,  or  he  must  from  the  first  be 
accustomed  to  perfect  obedience.  The  worst  training  of  all 
is  to  leave  him  wavering  between  his  own  will  and  yours, 
and  to  dispute  incessantly  with  him  as  to  which  shall  be 
master.  I  should  a  hundred  times  prefer  his  being  master 
in  every  case. 


329 

11.  Reverse  the  common  practice,  and  you  will  nearly 
always  do  well.     Parents  and  teachers  desiring  to  make  of  a 
child  not  a  child,  but  a  learned  man,  have  never  begun  early 
enough  to  chide,  to  correct,  to  reprimand,  to  flatter,  to  prom- 
ise, to  instruct,  to  discourse  reason  to  him.     Do  better  than 
this:  be  reasonable  yourself,  and  do  not  argue  with  your 
pupil,  least  of  all,  to  make  him  approve  what  he  dislikes. 
For  if  you  persist  in  reasoning  about  disagreeable  things, 
you  make  reasoning  disagreeable  to  him,  and  weaken  its 
influence  beforehand  in  a  mind  as  yet  unfitted  to  understand 
it.     Keep  his  organs,  his  senses,  his  physical  strength,  busy ; 
but,  as  long  as  possible,  keep  his  mind   inactive.     Guard 
against  all  sensations  arising  in  advance  of  judgment,  which 
estimates  their  true  value.     Keep  back  and  check  unfamiliar 
impressions,  and  be  in  no  haste  to  do  good  for  the  sake  of 
preventing  evil.     For  the  good  is  not  real  unless  enlightened 
by  reason.     Regard  every  delay  as  an  advantage ;  for  much 
is  gained  if  the  critical  period  be  approached  without  losing 
anything.     Let  childhood  have  its  full  growth.     If  indeed 
a  lesson  must  be  given,  avoid  it  to-day,  if  you  can  without 
danger  delay  it  until  to-morrow. 

12.  I  do  not  intend  to  enter  fully  into  details,  but  to  lay 
down  some  general  maxims  and  to  illustrate  difficult  cases. 
I  believe  it  impossible,  in  the  very  heart  of  social  surround- 
ings, to  educate  a  child  up  to  the  age  of  twelve  years,  without 
giving  him  some  ideas  of  the  relations  of  man  to  man,  and 
of  morality  in  human  actions.     It  will  suffice  if  we  put  off  as 
long  as  possible  the  necessity  for  these  ideas,  and  when  they 
must  be  given,  limit  them  to  such  as  are  immediately  appli- 
cable.    We  must  do  this  only  lest  he  consider  himself  master 
of  everything,  and  so  injure  others  without  scruple,  because 
unknowingly.     There  are  gentle,  quiet  characters  who,  in 
their  early  innocence,  may  be  led  a  long  way  without  danger 
of  this  kind.     But  others,  naturally  violent,  whose  wildness 


330  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

is  precocious,  must  be  trained  into  men  as  early  as  may  be, 
that  you  may  not  be  obliged  to  fetter  them  outright. 

13.  We  are  now  within  the  domain  of  morals,  and  the 
door,  is  open  to  vice.     Side  by  side  with  conventionalities  and 
duties  spring  up  deceit  and  falsehood.     As  soon  as  there  are 
things  we  ought  not  to  do,  we  desire  to  hide  what  we  ought 
not  to  have  done.     As  soon  as  one  interest  leads  us  to  prom- 
ise, a  stronger  one  may  urge  us  to  break  the  promise.     Our 
chief  concern  is  how  to  break  it  and  still  go  unscathed.     It  is 
natural  to  find  expedients ;  we  dissemble  and  we  utter  false- 
hood.    Unable  to  prevent  this  evil,  we  must  nevertheless 
punish  it.     Thus  the  miseries  of  our  life  arise  from  our  mis- 
takes. 

I  have  said  enough  to  show  that  punishment,  as  such, 
should  not  be  inflicted  upon  children,  but  should  always  hap- 
pen to  them  as  the  natural  result  of  their  own  wrong-doing. 
Do  not,  then,  preach  to  them  against  falsehood,  or  punish 
them  confessedly  on  account  of  a  falsehood.  But  if  they  are 
guilty  of  one,  let  all  its  consequences  fall  heavily  on  their 
heads.  Let  them  know  what  it  is  to  be  disbelieved  even 
when  they  speak  the  truth,  and  to  be  accused  of  faults  in 
spite  of  their  earnest  denial. 

14.  The  only  moral  lesson  suited  to  childhood  and  the 
most  important  at  any  age  is,  never  to  injure  any  one.     Even 
the  principle  of  doing  good,  if  not  subordinated  to  this,  is 
dangerous,  false,  and  contradictory.     For  who  does  not  do 
good?     Everybody  does,  even  a  wicked  man  who  makes  one 
happy  at  the  expense  of  making  a  hundred  miserable:  and 
thence  arise  all  our  calamities.     The  most  exalted  virtues  are 
negative:  they  are  hardest  to  attain,  too,  because  they  are 
unostentatious,  and  rise  above  even  that  gratification  dear 
to  the  heart  of  man, —  sending  another  person  away  pleased 
with  us.     If  there  be  a  man  who  never  injures  one  of  his 
fellow-creatures,   what   good   must   he   achieve   for   them! 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  331 

What  fearlessness,  what  vigor  of  mind  he  requires  for  it! 
Not  by  reasoning  about  this  principle,  but  by  attempting  to 
carry  it  into  practice,  do  we  find  out  how  great  it  is,  how 
hard  to  fulfil. 

15.  Respect  children,  and  be  in  no  haste  to  judge  their 
actions,  good  or  evil.     Let  the  exceptional  cases  show  them- 
selves such  for  some  time  before  you  adopt  special  methods 
of  dealing  with  them.     Let  nature  be  long  at  work  before  you 
attempt  to  supplant  her,  lest  you  thwart  her  work.     You  say 
you  know  how  precious  time  is,  and  do  not  wish  to  lose  it. 
Do  you  not  know  that  to  employ  it  badly  is  to  waste  it  still 
more,  and  that  a  child  badly  taught  is  farther  from  being 
wise  than  one  not  taught  at  all  ?     You  are  troubled  at  seeing 
him  spend  his  early  years  in  doing  nothing.     What!  is  it 
nothing  to  be  happy?     Is  it  nothing  to  skip,  to  play,  to  run 
about  all  day  long?     Never  in  all  his  life  will  he  be  so  busy 
as  now. 

1 6.  Pedagogues,  who  make  such  an  imposing  display  of 
what  they  teach,  are  paid  to  talk  in  another  strain  than  mine, 
but  their  conduct  shows  that  they  think  as  I  do.     For  after 
all,  what  do  they  teach  their  pupils  ?     Words,  words,  words. 
Among  all  their  boasted  subjects,  none  are  selected  because 
they  are  useful ;  such  would  be  the  sciences  of  things,  in 
which  these  professors  are  unskillful.     But  they  prefer  sci- 
ences ;  we  seem  to  know  when  we  know  their  nomenclature, 
such  as  heraldry,  geography,  chronology,  languages ;  studies 
so  far  removed  from  human  interests,  and  particularly  from 
the  child,  that  it  would  be  wonderful  if  any  of  them  could  be 
of  the  least  use  at  any  time  in  life. 

17.  In  any  study,  words  that  represent  things  are  nothing 
without  the  ideas  of  the  things  they  represent.     We,  how- 
ever, limit  children  to  these  signs,  without  ever  being  able  to 
make  them  understand  the  things  represented.     We  think  we 
are  teaching  a  child  the  description  of  the  earth,  when  he  is 


332  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

merely  learning  maps.  We  teach  him  the  names  of  cities, 
countries,  rivers ;  he  has  no  idea  that  they  exist  anywhere 
but  on  the  map  we  use  in  pointing  them  out  to  him.  I  recol- 
lect seeing  somewhere  a  text-book  on  geography  which 
began  thus :  "  What  is  the  world  ?  A  pasteboard  globe." 
Precisely  such  is  the  geography  of  children.  I  will  venture 
to  say  that  after  two  years  of  globes  and  cosmography  no 
child  of  ten,  by  rules  they  give  him,  could  find  the  way  from 
Paris  to  St.  Denis.  I  maintain  that  not  one  of  them,  from 
a  plan  of  his  father's  garden,  could  trace  out  its  windings 
without  going  astray.  And  yet  these  are  the  knowing  crea- 
tures who  can  tell  you  exactly  where  Pekin,  Ispahan,  Mexi- 
co, and  all  the  countries  of  the  world  are. 

1 8.  The  memory  of  which  a  child  is  capable  is  far  from 
inactive,  even  without  the  use  of  books.     All  he  sees  and 
hears  impresses  him,  and  he  remembers  it.     He  keeps  a  men- 
tal  register   of  people's    sayings  and   doings.     Everything 
around  him  is  the  book  from  which  he  is  continually  but  un- 
consciously enriching  his  memory  against  the  time  his  judg- 
ment can  benefit  by  it.     If  we  intend  rightly  to  cultivate  this 
chief  faculty  of  the  mind,  we  must  choose  these  objects 
carefully,  constantly  acquainting  him  with  such  as  he  ought 
to  understand,  and  keeping  back  those  he  ought  not  to  know. 
In  this  way  we  should  endeavor  to  make  his  mind  a  store- 
house of  knowledge,  to  aid  in  his  education  in  youth,  and  to 
direct  him  at  all  times.     This  method  does  not,  it  is  true,  pro- 
duce phenomenal  children,  nor  does  it  make  the  reputation  of 
their  teachers;  but  it  produces  judicious,  robust  men,  sound 
in  body  and  in  mind,  who,  although  not  admired  in  youth, 
will  make  themselves  respected  in  manhood. 

19.  Man's  first  natural  movements  are  for  the  purpose  of 
comparing  himself  with  whatever  surrounds  him  and  finding 
in  each  thing  those  sensible  qualities  likely  to  affect  himself. 
His  first  study  is,  therefore,  a  kind  of  experimental  physics 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  333 

relating  to  his  own  preservation.  From  this,  before  he  has 
fully  understood  his  place  here  on  earth,  he  is  turned  aside 
to  speculative  studies.  While  yet  his  delicate  and  pliable 
organs  can  adapt  themselves  to  the  objects  upon  which  they 
are  to  act,  while  his  senses,  still  pure,  are  free  from  illusion, 
it  is  time  to  exercise  both  in  their  peculiar  functions,  and  to 
learn  the  perceptible  relations  between  ourselves  and  out- 
ward things.  Since  whatever  enters  the  human  understand- 
ing enters  by  the  senses,  man's  primitive  reason  is  a  reason 
of  the  senses,  serving  as  foundation  for  the  reason  of  the 
intellect.  Our  first  teachers  in  philosophy  are  our  own 
feet,  hands,  and  eyes.  To  substitute  books  for  these  is 
teaching  us  not  to  reason,  but  to  use  the  reason  of  another ; 
to  believe  a  great  deal,  and  to  know  nothing  at  all. 

20.  All  children,  being  natural  imitators,  try  to  draw.     I 
would  have  my  pupil  cultivate  this  art,  not  exactly  for  the 
sake  of  the  art  itself,  but  to  render  the  eye  true  and  the 
hand  flexible.     In  general,  it  matters  little  whether  he  under- 
stands this  or  that  exercise,  provided  he  acquires  the  mental 
insight,  and  the  manual  skill  furnished  by  the  exercise.     I 
should  take  care,  therefore,  not  to  give  him  a  drawing- 
master,  who  would  give  him  only  copies  to  imitate,  and 
would  make  him  draw  from  drawings  only.     He  shall  have 
no  teacher  but  nature,  no  models  but  real  things.     He  shall 
have  before  his  eyes  the  originals,  and  not  the  paper  which 
represents  them.     He  shall  draw  a  house  from  a  real  house, 
a  tree  from  a  tree,  a  human  figure  from  the  man  himself.     In 
this  way  he  will  accustom  himself  to  observe  bodies  and  their 
appearances,  and  not  mistake  for  accurate  imitations  those 
that  are  false  and  conventional. 

BOOK    III. 

21.  In  general,  never  show  the  representation  of  a  thing 
unless  it  be  impossible,  to  show  the  thing  itself ;  for  the  sign 


334  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

absorbs  the  child's  attention,  and  makes  him  Jose  sight  of  the 
thing  signified. 

The  two  starting-points  in  his  geography  shall  be  the 
town  in  which  he  lives,  and  his  father's  house  in  the  country. 
Afterward  shall  come  the  places  lying  between  these  two; 
then  the  neighboring  rivers ;  lastly,  the  aspect  of  the  sun,  and 
the  manner  of  finding  out  where  the  east  is.  This  last  is  the 
point  of  union.  Let  him  make  himself  a  map  of  all  these 
details;  a  very  simple  map,  including  at  first  only  two  ob- 
jects, then  by  degrees  the  others,  as  he  learns  their  distance 
and  position.  You  see  now  what  an  advantage  we  have 
gained  beforehand,  by  making  his  eyes  serve  him  instead  of 
a  compass. 

22.  Bear  in  mind  always  that  the  life  and  soul  of  my 
system  is,  not  to  teach  the  child  many  things,  but  to  allow 
only  correct  and  clear  ideas  to  enter  his  mind.     I  do  not 
care  if  he  knows  nothing,  so  long  as  he  is  not  mistaken.     To 
guard  him  from  errors  he  might  learn,  I  furnish  his  mind 
with  truths  only.     Reason  and  judgment  enter  slowly;  prej- 
udices crowd  in;  and  he  must  be  preserved  from  these  last. 
Yet  if  you  consider  science  in  itself,  you  launch  upon  an 
unfathomable  and  boundless  sea,  full  of  unavoidable  dan- 
gers.    When  I  see  a  man  carried  away  by  his  love  for  knowl- 
edge, hastening  from  one  alluring  science  to  another,  without 
knowing  where  to  stop,  I  think  I   see  a  child  gathering 
shells  upon  the  seashore.     At  first  he  loads  himself  with 
them ;  then,  tempted  by  others,  he  throws  these  away,  and 
gathers  more.     At  last,  weighed  down  by  so  many,  and  no 
longer  knowing  which  to  choose,  he  ends  by  throwing  all 
away,  and  returning  empty-handed. 

23.  Let  the  child  take  nothing  for  granted  because  some 
one  says  it  is  so.     Nothing  is  good  to  him  but  what  he  feels 
to  be  good.     You  think  it  far  sighted  to  push  him  beyond 
his  understanding  of  things,  but  you  are  mistaken.     For  the 


SELECTIONS  PROM  ROUSSEAU  335 

sake  of  arming  him  with  weapons  he  does  not  know  how  to 
use,  you  take  from  him  one  universal  among  men,  common 
sense :  you  teach  him  to  allow  himself  always  to  be  led, 
never  to  be  more  than  a  machine  in  the  hands  of  others.  If 
you  will  have  him  docile  while  he  is  young,  you  will  make 
him  a  credulous  dupe  when  he  is  a  man.  You  are  contin- 
ually saying  to  him,  "  All  I  require  of  you  is  for  your  own 
good,  but  you  cannot  understand  it  yet.  What  does  it 
matter  to  me  whether  you  do  what  I  require  or  not?  You 
are  doing  it  entirely  for  your  own  sake."  With  such  fine 
speeches  you  are  paving  the  way  for  some  kind  of  trickster 
or  fool, —  some  visionary  babbler  or  charlatan, —  who  will 
entrap  him  or  persuade  him  to  adopt  his  own  folly. 

Obliged  to  learn  by  his  own  effort,  he  employs  his  own 
reason,  not  that  of  another.  Most  of  our  mistakes  arise  less 
within  ourselves  than  from  others ;  so  that  if  he  is  not  to  be 
ruled  by  opinion,  he  must  receive  nothing  upon  authority. 
Such  continual  exercise  must  invigorate  the  mind  as  labor 
and  fatigue  strengthen  the  body. 

The  mind  as  well  as  the  body  can  bear  only  what  its 
strength  will  allow.  When  the  understanding  fully  masters 
a  thing  before  intrusting  it  to  the  memory,  what  it  afterward 
draws  therefrom  is  in  reality  its  own.  But  if  instead  we  load 
the  memory  with  matters  the  understanding  has  not  mas- 
tered, we  run  the  risk  of  never  finding  there  anything  that 
belongs  to  it. 

24.  Since  we  must  have  books,  there  is  one  which,  to  my 
mind,  furnishes  the  finest  of  treatises  on  education  according 
to  nature.  My  fimile  shall  read  this  book  before  any  other ; 
it  shall  for  a  long  time  be  his  entire  library,  and  shall  always 
hold  an  honorable  place.  It  shall  be  the  text  on  which 
all  our  discussions  of  natural  science  shall  be  only  commen- 
taries. It  shall  be  a  test  for  all  we  meet  during  our  progress 
toward  a  ripened  judgment,  and  so  long  as  our  taste  is  un- 


336  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

spoiled,  we  shall  enjoy  reading  it.  What  wonderful  book  is 
this?  Aristotle?  Pliny?  Buffon?  No;  it  is  "Robinson 
Crusoe." 

The  story  of  this  man,  alone  on  his  island,  unaided  by  his 
fellow-men,  without  any  art  or  its  implements,  and  yet  pro- 
viding for  his  own  preservation  and  subsistence,  even  con- 
triving to  live  in  what  might  be  called  comfort,  is  interesting 
to  persons  of  all  ages.  It  may  be  made  delightful  to  chil- 
dren in  a  thousand  ways.  Thus  we  make  the  desert  island, 
which  I  used  at  the  outset  for  a  comparison,  a  reality. 

25.  In  a  word,  fimile  has  every  virtue  which  affects  him- 
self.    To  have  the  social  virtues  as  well,  he  only  needs  to 
know  the  relations  which  make  them  necessary;  and  this 
knowledge  his  mind  is  ready  to  receive.     He  considers  him- 
self independently  of  others,  and  is  satisfied  when  others 
do  not  think  of  him  at  all.     He  exacts  nothing  from  others, 
and  never  thinks  of  owing  anything  to  them.     He  is  alone  in 
human  society,  and  depends  solely  upon  himself.     He  has  the 
best  right  of  all  to  be  independent,  for  he  is  all  that  any  one 
can  be  at  his  age.     He  has  no  errors  but  such  as  a  human 
being  must  have;  no  vices  but  those  from  which  no  one 
can  warrant  himself  exempt.     He  has  a  sound  constitution, 
active  limbs,  a  fair  and  unprejudiced  mind,  a  heart  free  and 
without  passions.     Self-love,  the  first  and  most  natural  of  all, 
has  scarcely  manifested   itself  at  all.     Without  disturbing 
any  one's  peace  of  mind  he  has  led  a  happy,  contented  life,  as 
free  as  nature  will  allow.     Do  you  think  a  youth  who  has 
thus  attained  his  fifteenth  year  has  lost  the  years  that  have 
gone  before? 

BOOK    IV. 

26.  Respect  your  species;  consider  that  it  is  composed 
essentially  of  a  collection  of  peoples;  that  even  if  all  the 
kings  and  all  the  philosophers  were  taken  away,  they  would 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  337 

scarcely  be  missed,  and  that  things  would  not  go  worse.  In 
a  word,  teach  your  pupil  to  love  all  men,  even  those  who 
despise  them;  let  him  not  belong  to  any  class,  but  be  at 
home  in  all.  Speak  before  him  of  the  human  race  with  ten- 
derness, even  with  pity,  but  never  with  contempt.  Man, 
do  not  dishonor  man ! 

27.  When  the  critical  age  approaches,  bring  before  young 
people  scenes  that  will  restrain  and  not  excite  them;  give 
a  change  to  their  nascent  imagination  by  objects  which,  far 
from  inflaming  their  senses,  will  repress  the  activity  of  them. 
Remove  them  from  great  cities  where  the  dress  and  immod- 
esty of  women  will  hasten  and  anticipate  the  lessons  of  na- 
ture, where  everything  presents  to  their  eyes  pleasures  which 
they  ought  to  be  acquainted  with  only  when  they  know  how 
to  choose  them.    'Take  them  back  to  their  first  dwelling- 
place,  where  rural  simplicity  lets  the  passions  of  their  age 
develop  less  rapidly ;  or  if  their  taste  for  the  arts  still  at- 
taches them  to  the  city,  prevent  in  them,  by  this  taste  itself, 
a  dangerous  idleness.     Carefully  choose  their  associations, 
their  occupations,  and  their  pleasures ;  show  them  only  touch- 
ing but  modest  pictures,  which  will  move  without  demoraliz- 
ing them,  and  which  will  nourish  their  sensibilities  without 
stirring  their  senses. 

28.  When  I  see  that  young  people,  at  the  age  of  greatest 
activity,  are  restricted  to  studies  purely  speculative,  and  that 
afterwards,  without  the  slightest  experience,  they  are  sud- 
denly thrown  into  society 'and  business,  I  find  that  reason 
no  less  than  nature  is  offended,  and  I  am  no  longer  sur- 
prised that  so   few  persons  know  how  to  act.     By  what 
strange  perversity  of  mind  are  we  taught  so  many  useless 
things,  while  the  art  of  doing  counts  for  nothing?     People 
pretend  to  form  us  for  society,  and  instruct  us  as  if  each  one 
were  to  pass  his  life  in  thinking  alone  in  his  cell,  or  in  treat- 
ing subjects  with  indifference.     You  think  you  are  teaching 

PAINTER   FED.    Ess. —  22 


338  JEAN  JACQUES  ROUSSEAU 

your  children  to  live  by  instructing  them  in  certain  contor- 
tions of  the  body  and  in  certain  forms  of  words,  which  have 
no  meaning.  I  too  have  taught  my  fimile  to  live ;  for  I  have 
taught  him  to  live  with  himself,  and  besides  to  know  how  to 
earn  his  bread.  But  that  is  not  enough.  To  live  in  society, 
we  must  know  how  to  deal  with  men,  how  to  recognize  the 
means  of  influencing  them ;  how  to  calculate  the  action  and 
reaction  of  individual  interests  in  civil  society,  and  to  foresee 
events  so  clearly  that  we  are  rarely  deceived,  or  at  least  al- 
ways take  the  best  means  to  succeed. 

29.  I  foresee  how  many  of  my  readers  will  be  surprised 
to  see  me  let  the  early  years  of  my  pupil  pass  without  speak- 
ing to  him  of  religion.     At  fifteen  he  did  not  know  whether 
he  had  a  soul,  and  perhaps  at  eighteen  it  is  not  yet  time  for 
him  to  learn  it;  for  if  he  learns  it  sooner  than  is  necessary, 
he  runs  the  risk  of  never  knowing  it. 

30.  If  there  is  nothing  of  morality  in  the  human  soul, 
whence  come  those  transports  of  admiration  for  heroic  deeds, 
those  raptures  of  love  for  great  souls?     What  relation  has 
this  enthusiasm  for  virtue  with  our  private  interests?     Why 
should  I  rather  be  Cato  who  thrusts  a  dagger  into  his  heart, 
than  Csesar  with  all  his  triumphs?     Take  away  from  our 
hearts  this  love  of  the  beautiful,  and  you  take  away  all  the 
charm  of  life.     He  whose  vile  passions  have  stifled  in  his 
narrow  soul  these  delightful  sentiments ;  he  who,  by  always 
centering  his  thoughts  upon  himself,  comes  at  length  to  love 
only  himself,  has  no  more  transports ;  his  icy  heart  no  longer 
palpitates  with  joy ;  a  sweet  tenderness  never  moistens  his 
eyes;  he  no  longer  enjoys  anything;  the  wretch  no  longer 
feels,  no  longer  lives ;  he  is  already  dead. 

31.  Be  sincere  and  true  without  pride;  know  how  to  be 
ignorant:  you  will  deceive  neither  yourself  nor  others.     If 
ever  your  cultivated  talents  put  you  in  a  position  to  speak 
to  men,  speak  to  them  always  according  to  your  conscience. 


SELECTIONS  FROM  ROUSSEAU  339 

without  being  embarrassed  if  they  do  not  applaud.  The 
abuse  of  knowledge  begets  incredulity.  Every  learned  man 
disdains  the  common  sentiment ;  each  one  wishes  to  have  an 
opinion  of  his  own.  A  proud  philosophy  leads  to  scepticism, 
as  a  blind  devotion  leads  to  fanaticism.  Avoid  these  ex- 
tremes; always  remain  firm  in  the  path  of  truth,  or  of  what 
seems  to  be  so  in  the  simplicity  of  your  heart,  without  ever 
turning  aside  through  vanity  or  weakness.  Dare  to  confess 
God  among  philosophers;  dare  to  preach  humanity  to  the 
intolerant.  You  will  be  alone  in  your  position  perhaps ;  but 
you  will  have  within  yourself  a  testimony  that  will  enable 
you  to  do  without  that  of  men.  Whether  they  love  you  or 
hate  you,  whether  they  read  or  despise  your  writings,  makes 
no  difference.  Speak  what  is  true,  do  what  is  right;  that 
which  is  important  for  man  is  to  fulfil  his  duties  upon  the 
earth;  and  it  is  by  forgetting  one's  self  that  one  works  for 
one's  self.  My  child,  selfish  interests  deceive  us;  it  is  only 
the  hope  of  the  just  that  never  deceives. 

BOOK  v. 

32.  On  the  good  constitution  of  mothers  depends  that  of 
children  ;  on  the  care  of  woman  depends  the  first  education  of 
men ;  on  woman  depend  again  their  manners,  their  passions, 
their  tastes,  their  pleasures,  and  even  their  happiness.  Thus 
all  the  education  of  women  ought  to  be  relative  to  men. 
To  please  them,  to  be  useful  to  them,  to  make  themselves 
loved  and  honored  by  them,  to  bring  them  up  when  young, 
to  care  for  them  when  grown,  to  counsel  and  console  them, 
to  render  their  life  agreeable  and  sweet  —  these  are  the 
duties  of  women  in  every  age,  and  what  they  ought  to  learn 
from  their  childhood.  So  long  as  we  do  not  recognize  this 
principle,  we  shall  miss  the  end,  and  all  the  precepts  we  give 
them  will  be  of  no  service  either  for  their  happiness  or  ours. 


XXII.     IMMANUEL  KANT. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

This  illustrious  philosopher  was  born  at  Konigsberg, 
April  22,  1724,  and  died  there  February  12,  1804.  He  was 
educated  in  the  University  of  his  native  city,  where,  after 
serving  as  a  tutor  in  private  families  for  several  years,  and 
afterwards  acting  as  Privatdocent,  he  was  appointed  profes- 
sor in  the  philosophical  faculty  in  1770.  His  life  was  given  to 
study  with  great  singleness  of  purpose;  he  never  married, 
and  it  is  said  that  he  never  traveled  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  small  province  in  which  he  was  born.  His  philosophic 
system,  known  as  the  critical  philosophy,  marks  a  turning 
point  in  the  history  of  speculative  thought.  He  proved  him- 
self one  of  the  profoundest  thinkers  of  all  time. 

With  his  philosophical  system,  which  had  no  immediate 
or  determining  influence  upon  his  educational  system,  we 
have  here  nothing  to  do.  As  professor  of  philosophy  Kant 
was  required  to  deliver  courses  of  lectures  on  pedagogy,  a 
subject  in  which  he  had  become  deeply  interested.  He  had 
read  Rousseau's  "  fimile "  with  delighted  attention,  and 
observed  Basedow's  experiments  with  hopeful  interest.  Un- 
fortunately he  did  not  prepare  an  elaborate  work  on  educa- 
tion. What  we  have  are  the  notes  of  his  lectures,  which,  not 
long  before  his  death,  were  revised  and  arranged  by  his 
pupil  Rink.  They  were  published  in  1803  under  the  title 
"  Immanuel  Kant  iiber  Padagogik."  It  is  a  comparatively 
brief  treatise,  covering  only  seventy  pages  of  Kant's  collect- 
ive works.,  in  which  it  is  now  included. 

340 


SELECTION  FROM  KANT  34! 

The  treatise  is  divided  into  three  parts,  namely,  the  intro- 
duction, physical  education,  and  practical  or  moral  education. 
In  spite  of  its  lack  of  careful,  systematic  development,  it  is 
notable  for  the  lofty  spirit  in  which  it  is  written,  and  for 
the  profound  pedagogical  principles  which  here  and  there 
appear.  The  introduction  which,  with  a  few  minor  omis- 
sions, is  here  given,  presents  pretty  fully  the  various  phases 
of  Kant's  system  of  education.  He  assigns  a  high  aim  to 
education  —  the  perfection  of  the  individual  —  and  lays 
great  stress  upon  the  importance  of  moral  training.  His 
pedagogy  was  not  without  influence.  A  number  of  promi- 
nent German  educators,  among  whom  may  be  mentioned 
Niemeyer,  Schwarz,  and  Rosenkranz,  were  stimulated  and 
directed  by  the  teachings  of  the  Konigsberg  philosopher. 

SELECTION  FROM  KANT. 

PEDAGOGY. 

I.  Man  is  the  only  creature  that  needs  to  be  educated. 
By  education  we  understand  nurture  (attention,  food),  dis- 
cipline, and  instruction  together  with  culture.  Accordingly 
man  is  infant,  child,  and  pupil. 

Animals  use  their  powers,  as  soon  as  they  are  possessed 
of  them,  according  to  a  regular  plan,  that  is,  in  a  way  not 
to  injure  themselves.  It  is  indeed  wonderful,  for  example, 
that  young  swallows,  newly  hatched  and  still  blind,  are 
careful  not  to  defile  their  nest.  Animals  therefore  need  no 
nurture,  but  at  the  most  food,  warmth,  and  guidance,  or  a 
kind  of  protection.  It  is  true  most  animals  need  feeding, 
but  they  do  not  require  nurture.  For  by  nurture  we  mean 
the  tender  care  that  parents  exercise  in  order  to  prevent 
their  children  from  using  their  powers  in  a  way  to  be  harmful 
to  them.  For  instance,  should  an  animal  cry  at  birth,  as 


342  tMMANVEL  KANT 

children  do,  it  would  surely  fall  a  prey  to  wolves  and  other 
wild  animals,  which  would  be  attracted  by  its  cry. 

2.  Discipline  or  training  transforms  animal  nature  into 
human  nature.     An  animal  is  by  instinct  all  that  it  ever  can 
be;  some  other  reason  has  already  provided  everything  for 
it.     But  man  needs  a  reason  of  his  own.     Having  no  in- 
stinct, he  has  to  work  out  a  plan  of  conduct  himself.     Since, 
however,  he  is  not  able  to  do  this  at  once,  but  comes  into 
the  world  undeveloped,  others  must  do  it  for  him. 

Through  its  own  efforts  the  human  race  is  by  degrees  to 
develop  all  the  natural  endowments  of  man.  One  genera- 
tion educates  the  next.  The  beginning  of  this  process  may 
be  looked  for  either  in  a  rude  and  unformed,  or  in  a  perfect 
and  cultivated  condition.  If  we  assume  the  latter,  man  must 
afterwards  have  degenerated  and  lapsed  into  barbarism. 

Discipline  prevents  man  from  being  turned  aside  by  his 
animal  impulses  from  humanity,  his  appointed  end.  It  must 
restrain  him,  for  example,  from  venturing  wildly  and 
thoughtlessly  into  danger.  Discipline  thus  is  merely  nega- 
tive, namely,  the  process  by  which  man  is  deprived  of  his 
brutality.  Instruction,  on  the  contrary,  is  the  positive  part 
of  education. 

Brutality  is  independence  of  law.  Discipline  subjects  man 
to  the  laws  of  mankind,  and  lets  him  feel  their  constraint. 
But  this  must  take  place  early.  Thus  children  are  at  first 
sent  to  school,  not  so  much  to  learn  anything,  as  to  become 
accustomed  to  sitting  still  and  obeying  promptly  what  they 
are  told,  to  the  end  that  later  in  life  they  may  not  actually 
and  instantly  follow  all  their  impulses. 

3.  The  love  of  freedom  is  naturally  so  strong  in  man 
that  when  he  has  once  grown  accustomed  to  it,  he  will 
sacrifice  everything  for  it.     For  this  very  reason  discipline 
must  be  brought  into  exercise  early;  for  when  this  has  not 
been  done,  it  is  difficult  afterwards  to  change  the  character. 


SELECTION  FROM  KANT  343 

He  will  then  follow  every  caprice.  We  see  this  also  among 
savage  nations  which,  though  they  may  live  in  subjection  to 
Europeans  a  long  time,  yet  never  adopt  European  customs. 
With  them,  however,  this  is  not  a  noble  love  of  freedom,  as 
Rousseau  and  others  imagine,  but  a  kind  of  savagery,  in 
which  the  animal,  so  to  speak,  has  not  yet  developed  its 
humanity.  Man  should  therefore  accustom  himself  early 
to  submit  to  the  dictates  of  reason.  If  a  man  in  his  youth 
is  allowed  to  follow  his  own  will  without  opposition,  he  will 
retain  a  certain  lawlessness  through  life.  And  it  is  no  ad- 
vantage to  such  a  man  to  be  spared  in  his  youth  through  a 
superabundant  motherly  tenderness,  for  later  on  he  will 
meet  with  all  the  more  opposition  on  every  side  and  every- 
where encounter  rebuffs,  when  he  enters  into  the  business 
of  the  world. 

It  is  a  common  mistake  in  the  education  of  the  great  that, 
because  they  are  destined  to  rule,  they  should  never  meet 
with  opposition  in  their  youth.  Owing  to  his  love  of  free- 
dom, man  needs  to  have  his  native  roughness  smoothed 
down ;  but  with  animals  instinct  renders  this  unnecessary. 

4.  Man  needs  nurture  and  culture.  Culture  includes 
discipline  and  instruction.  These,  so  far  as  we  know,  no 
( animal  needs;  for  none  of  them  learn  anything  from  their 
elders,  except  the  birds,  which  are  taught  by  them  to  sing. 
It  is  a  touching  sight  to  watch  the  mother  bird  singing  with 
all  her  might  to  her  young  ones,  which  like  children  at 
school,  try  to  produce  the  same  tones  out  of  their  tiny 
throats. 

Man  can  become  man  only  by  education.  He  is  nothing 
but  what  education  makes  him.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  man 
is  educated  only  by  men  who  have  themselves  been  educated. 
Hence  lack  of  discipline  and  instruction  on  the  part  of  some 
men  makes  them  in  turn  bad  educators  of  their  pupils. 
Were  some  being  of  a  higher  nature  than  man  to  undertake 


344  IMMANUEL  KANT 

our  education,  we  should  then  be  able  to  see  what  man  might 
become.  Since  some  things  are  imparted  to  man  by  educa- 
tion, and  others  only  developed,  it  is  difficult  for  us  to  esti- 
mate accurately  his  native  capabilities.  If,  by  the  help  of  the 
great  and  the  cooperative  efforts  of  many  persons,  the  ex- 
periment were  made,  we  might  gain  some  idea  of  the  emi- 
nence which  it  is  possible  for  man  to  attain.  But  it  is  just 
as  important  for  the  philosopher,  as  it  is  sad  for  the  philan- 
thropist, to  see  how  the  great  generally  care  only  for  their 
own  interests,  and  take  no  part  in  the  weighty  experiments 
of  education,  which  might  bring  our  nature  one  step  nearer 
to  perfection. 

5.  A  theory  of  education  is  a  glorious  ideal,  and  it  mat- 
ters little,  if  we  are  not  able  to  realize  it  at  once.     Only  we 
must  not  look  upon  the  idea  as  chimerical,  nor  decry  it  as  a 
beautiful  dream,  though  difficulties  stand  in  the  way  of  its 
realization. 

An  idea  is  nothing  else  than  the  conception  of  a  perfec- 
tion that  has  not  yet  been  realized.  For  instance,  the  idea 
of  a  perfect  republic  governed  by  the  principles  of  justice  — 
is  it  impossible  because  it  has  never  existed?  First  of  all 
our  idea  must  be  correct,  and  then,  in  spite  of  all  the  hin- 
drances that  stand  in  the  way  of  its  realization,  it  is  by  no 
means  impossible.  If,  for  example,  lying  became  universal, 
would  veracity  on  that  account  be  merely  a  whim  ?  And  the 
idea  of  an  education  which  will  develop  all  man's  natural 
gifts  is  certainly  a  true  one. 

6.  Under  the  present  system  of  education  man  does  not 
fully  attain  the  object  of  his  being.     For  how  differently 
men  live!     Uniformity  can  prevail  among  them,  only  when 
they  act  according  to  the  same  principles,  which  have  be- 
come to  them  a  second  nature.     We  can  work  out  a  better 
system  of  education,  and  hand  down  to  posterity  such  direc- 
tions as  will  enable  them  by  degrees  to  bring  it  to  realization. 


SELECTION  FROM  KANT  345 

There  are  many  undeveloped  powers  in  man;  and  it  is 
our  task  to  unfold  these  natural  gifts  in  due  proportion,  to 
develop  humanity  from  its  germinal  state,  and  to  lead  man 
to  a  realization  of  his  destiny.  Animals  unconsciously  ful- 
fil their  destiny  themselves.  Man  must  strive  to  attain  it, 
but  this  he  can  not  do,  unless  he  has  a  conception  as  to  the 
object  of  his  existence.  The  fulfilment  of  his  destiny  is 
absolutely  impossible  to  the  individual.  In  times  past  men 
had  no  conception  of  the  perfection  to  which  human  nature 
might  attain.  We  ourselves  have  not  yet  become  perfectly 
clear  on  the  subject.  This  much,  however,  is  certain:  no 
individual  man,  whatever  may  be  the  culture  of  his  pupils, 
can  insure  the  fulfilment  of  their  destiny.  To  succeed  in 
this  high  end,  not  the  work  of  individuals,  but  that  of  the 
whole  human  race,  is  necessary. 

7.  Education  is  an  art,  the  practice  of  which  can  become 
perfect  only  through  many  generations.  Each  generation, 
provided  with  the  knowledge,  of  the  preceding  one,  can  more 
and  more  bring  about  an  education,  which  will  develop  man's 
natural  gifts  in  due  proportion  and  relation  to  their  end,  and 
thus  advance  the  whole  human  race  towards  its  destiny. 
Providence  has  willed  that  man  shall  develop  the  good  that 
lies  hidden  in  his  nature,  and  has  spoken,  as  it  were,  thus  to 
him :  "  Go  forth  into  the  world,  I  have  equipped  thee  with 
all  the  potencies  of  good.  It  is  for  thee  to  develop  them, 
and  thus  thy  happiness  and  unhappiness  depend  upon  thy- 
self alone." 

Man  must  develop  his  talents  for  the  good ;  Providence 
has  not  placed  a  fully  formed  goodness  in  him,  but  merely 
capabilities  without  moral  distinction.  Man's  duty  is  to 
improve  himself ;  to  cultivate  his  mind,  and  when  he  is  evil, 
to  develop  moral  character.  Upon  reflection  we  shall  find 
this  very  difficult.  Hence  education  is  the  greatest  and  most 
difficult  problem  to  which  man  can  devote  himself.  For 


346  IMMANUEL  KANT 

insight  depends  on  education,  and  education  in  its  turn  de- 
pends on  insight.  Hence  it  follows  that  education  can  ad- 
vance only  by  degrees,  and  that  a  true  conception  of  the 
method  of  education  can  arise  only  when  one  generation 
transmits  its  stores  of  experience  and  knowledge  to  the  fol- 
lowing one,  which  in  turn  adds  something  of  its  own  before 
handing  them  down  to  its  successor.  What  vast  culture 
and  experience  does  not  this  conception  presuppose!  Ac- 
cordingly it  can  originate  only  at  a  remote  period,  and  we 
ourselves  have  not  fully  realized  it.  The  question  arises 
whether  the  education  of  the  individual  should  be  con- 
formed to  the  education  of  the  human  race  through  its  suc- 
cessive generations? 

There  are  two  inventions  of  man  which  may  be  regarded 
as  the  most  difficult  of  all,  namely,  the  art  of  government 
and  the  art  of  education;  and  people  are  still  divided  as  to 
their  true  idea. 

8.  Since  the  development  of  man's  natural  gifts  does  not 
take  place  of  itself,  all  education  is  an  art.  Nature  has 
placed  no  instinct  in  him  for  that  purpose.  The  origin  as 
well  as  the  progress  of  this  art  is  either  mechanical  and 
without  plan,  ordered  according  to  given  circumstances,  or 
it  involves  the  exercise  of  intelligent  judgment.  Educa- 
tion is  mechanical  when  on  only  chance  occasions  we  learn 
by  experience  whether  anything  is  useful  or  harmful  to  man. 
All  education  which  is  merely  mechanical  must  carry  with 
it  many  mistakes  and  deficiencies  because  it  rests  on  no  basal 
principle.  If  education  is  to  develop  human  nature  so  that 
it  may  attain  its  destiny,  it  must  involve  the  exercise  of  judg- 
ment. Educated  parents  are  models  which  children  use  for 
imitation.  But  if  childrerf  are  to  progress  beyond  their 
parents,  pedagogy  must  become  a  study ;  otherwise  we  can 
hope  nothing  from  it,  and  men  of  defective  education  will 
become  the  educators  of  others.  Mechanism  in  education 


SELECTION  FROM  KANT  347 

must  be  changed  into  a  science ;  otherwise  it  will  never  be- 
come a  consistent  pursuit,  and  one  generation  may  pull  down 
what  another  had  built  up. 

9.  One  principle  of  education  which  those  men  espe- 
cially who  form  educational  schemes   should  keep  before 
their  eyes  is  this  —  children  ought  to  be  educated,  not  for 
the  present,  but  for  a  possibly  improved  condition  of  man 
in  the  future ;  that  is,  in  a  manner  which  is  adapted  to  the 
idea  of  humanity  and  the  whole  destiny  of  man.     This  prin- 
ciple is  of  great  importance.     Parents  usually  educate  their 
children  in  such  a  manner  that  they  may  be  adapted  to  the 
present  conditions,  however  degenerate  the  world  may  be. 
But  they  ought  to  give  them  a  better  education,  in  order  that 
a  better  condition  of  things  may  thereby  be  brought  about 
in  the  future. 

10.  Here,  however,  we  encounter  two  difficulties:     (i) 
Parents  usually  care  only  that  their  children  make  their  way 
in  the  world,  and  (2)  Princes  consider  their  subjects  only 
as  instruments  for  their  own  purposes.     Parents  care  for 
the  home,  princes  for  the  state.     Neither  have  as  their  aim 
the  universal  good  and  the  perfection  to  which  man  is  des- 
tined and  for  which  he  has  also  the  natural   gifts.     But 
the  basis  of  a  scheme  of  education  must  be  cosmopolitan. 
And  is,  then,  the  idea  of  the  universal  good  hurtful  to  us 
as   individuals  ?     Never !   for   though   it   may   appear   that 
something  must  be  sacrificed  with  this  idea,  nevertheless  it 
furthers  the  best  interests  of  the  individual  under  his  present 
conditions.     And  then  what  splendid  results  follow!     It  is 
through  good  education  that  all  the  good  in  the  world  arises. 
The  germs  which  lie  hidden  in  man  need  only  to  be  more 
and  more  developed.     For  the  elements  of  evil  are  not  to  be 
found  in  the  natural  endowments  of  man.     The  failure  to 
bring  nature  under  control  —  this  is  the  cause  of  evil.     In 
man  there  are  only  germs  of  good. 


348  IMMANUEL  KANT 

11.  But  by  whom  is  this  better  condition  of  the  world 
to  be  brought   about?     By   rulers,   or  by   their   subjects? 
Shall  the  latter  improve  themselves  so  that  they  meet  a  good 
government  half  way?     If  this  better  condition  is  to  be  es- 
tablished by  princes,  then  their  own  education  must  first  be 
improved,  for  their  training  has  long  suffered  the  great  mis- 
take of  not  allowing  them  to  meet  with  opposition  in  their 
youth. 

Accordingly  the  management  of  schools  should  entirely 
depend  upon  the  judgment  of  the  most  enlightened  experts. 
All  culture  begins  with  the  individual,  and  radiates  from 
him  as  a  center.  It  is  only  through  the  efforts  of  people  of 
broader  views,  who  take  an  interest  in  the  general  good, 
and  who  are  capable  of  entertaining  the  idea  of  a  better 
condition  of  things  in  the  future,  that  the  gradual  progress 
of  human  nature  towards  its  goal  is  possible. 

12.  Thus,  in  education,  man  must  in  the  first  place,  be 
made  the  subject  of  discipline.     Discipline  means  the  effort 
to  restrain  the  animal  side  of  our  nature,  in  the  individual 
as  well  as  in  social  life,  from  working  harm.     It  is  thus 
nothing  but  the  subjugation  of  our  brutality.     In  the  second 
place,  man  must  acquire  culture.     Culture  includes  informa- 
tion and  instruction.     It  is  culture  that  brings  out  ability. 
Ability  is  the  possession  of  a  faculty  which  is  capable  of  be- 
ing adapted  to  all  desired  ends.     It  does  not  determine  ends, 
but  leaves  that  to  subsequent  circumstances.     On  account  of 
the  multitude  of  ends,  ability  is  in  some  sense  infinite.     In 
the  third  place,  man  must  acquire  discretion  and  be  able  to 
conduct  himself  in  society  so  that  he  may  be  esteemed,  and 
possess  influence.     To  this  end  there  is  needed  a  kind  of 
culture  which  we  call  refinement.     This  includes  manners, 
courtesy,  and  a  certain  discretion,  which  will  enable  their 
possessor  to  use  all  men  for  his  own  ends.     This  refinement 
changes  according  to  the  varying  taste  of  successive  ages. 


SELECTION  FROM  KANT  349 

Thus,  some  decades  ago,  ceremonies  were  the  fashion  in  so- 
cial intercourse.  In  the  fourth  place,  moral  training  must 
form  a  part  of  education.  It  is  not  enough  that  a  man  be 
fitted  for  any  end,  but  he  must  also  acquire  the  disposition 
to  choose  only  good  ends.  Good  ends  are  those  which  are 
necessarily  approved  by  everyone,  and  which  may  at  the 
same  time  be  the  aim  of  everyone. 

13.  Man  may  be  either  broken  in,  trained,  and  mechan- 
ically  taught,   or   he   may   be    really   enlightened.     Horses 
and  dogs  are  broken  in,  and  man,  too,  may  be  broken  in. 
But  it  is  not  enough  that  children  should  be  merely  broken 
in ;    it    is    eminently    important    that    they    learn    to    think. 
That  leads  to  the  principle  from  which  all  transactions  pro- 
ceed.    Thus  we  see  that  a  real  education  involves  a  great 
deal.     But  as  a  rule,  in  private  education,  the  fourth  and 
most  important  point  is  still  too  much  neglected,  for  children 
are  substantially  educated  in  such  a  way  that  moral  training 
is  left  to  the  preacher.     And  yet  how  infinitely  important  it 
is  that  children  be  taught  from  youth  up  to  detest  vice,  not 
merely  on  the  ground  that  God  has  forbidden  it,  but  because 
it  is  in  itself  detestable. 

14.  Experimental  schools  must  be  established  before  we 
can   establish   normal   schools.     Education   and   instruction 
must  not  be  merely  mechanical ;  they  must  be  based  on  fixed 
principles.     Yet  education  must  be  not  entirely  theoretical, 
but  at  the  same  time,  in  a  certain  sense,  mechanical. 

People  commonly  imagine  that  experiments  in  education 
are  not  necessary,  and  that  we  can  judge  from  our  reason 
whether  anything  is  good  or  not.  But  this  is  a  great  mis- 
take, and  experience  teaches  that  the  results  of  our  experi- 
ments are  often  entirely  different  from  what  we  expected. 
Thus  we  see  that,  since  we  must  be  guided  by  experiments, 
no  one  generation  can  set  forth  a  complete  scheme  of  educa- 
tion. 


350  IMMANUEL  KANT 

15.  Education  is  either  private  or  public.     The  latter  is 
concerned  only  with  instruction,  and  this  can  always  remain 
public.     The  practice  of  what  is  taught  is  left  to  private 
education.     A  complete  public  education  is  one  which  unites 
instruction  and  moral  culture.     Its  aim  is  to  promote  a  good 
private  education. 

Education  in  the  home  is  conducted  either  by  the  parents 
themselves,  or,  should  the  parents  not  have  the  time,  apti- 
tude, or  inclination,  by  others  who  are  paid  to  assist  them. 
But  in  education  carried  on  by  these  assistants,  one  very 
great  difficulty  arises,  namely,  the  division  of  authority  be- 
tween parent  and  tutor.  The  child  must  obey  the  regula- 
tions of  his  teacher,  and  at  the  same  time  follow  the  whims 
of  his  parents.  The  only  way  out  of  this  difficulty  is  for 
parents  to  surrender  entirely  their  authority  to  the  tutor. 

16.  How  far,  then,  has  private  education  an  advantage 
over  public  education,  or  vice  versa?     In  general  it  seems  to 
me  that,  not  merely  for  the  development  of  ability  but  also 
for  the  cultivation  of  civic  character,  public  education  is  to 
be  preferred.     Private  education,  -in  many  cases,  not  only 
fosters  family  failings,  but  transmits  them  to  the  new  gen- 
eration. 

17.  One  of  the  greatest  problems  of  education  is  how  to 
unite  submission  to  legal  restraint  with  the  exercise  of  free- 
will.    For  restraint  is  necessary!     How  am  I  to  develop 
freedom  in  the  presence  of  restraint  ?     I  am  to  accustom  my 
pupil  to  endure  a  restraint  of  his  freedom,  and  at  the  same 
time  I  am  to  guide  him  to  use  his  freedom  aright.     Without 
this  all  education  is  merely  mechanical,  and  the  child,  when 
his  education  is  over,  does  not  know  how  to  make  a  proper 
use  of  his  freedom.     He  must  be  made  to  feel  early  the  in- 
evitable opposition  of  society,  that  he  may  learn  the  diffi- 
culty of  supporting  himself,  enduring  privation,  and  acquir- 
ing what  is  necessary  to  make  him  independent. 


XXIII.    JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

This  great  educational  reformer,  the  greatest  perhaps 
since  the  Reformation  of  the  sixteenth  century,  was  born 
January  12,  1746,  in  the  beautiful  town  of  Zurich.  He  was 
lacking  in  administrative  ability,  but  possessed  a  deep  love 
and  noble  enthusiasm  for  humanity.  Intellectual  force  was 
subordinate  in  him  to  imagination  and  sensibility.  He  en- 
gaged in  several  famous  educational  experiments,  all  which, 
in  spite  of  their  failure,  were  fruitful  in  blessings  to  man- 
kind. It  was  through  his  efforts,  unselfish  and  self-sacrific- 
ing, that  what  was  best  in  educational  theory  up  to  his  time 
obtained  permanent  recognition.  He  gave  a  new  impulse 
to  popular  education,  from  which  he  expected  great  im- 
provement in  the  moral,  intellectual,  and  social  condition  of 
Europe. 

Having  failed  as  a  farmer,  Pestalozzi  turned  his  farm, 
to  which  he  had  given  the  name  of  Neuhof ,  into  an  industrial 
school  for  the  poor.  He  soon  had  fifty  children  under  his 
charge  to  provide  for.  His  plan  was  to  combine  study  with 
remunerative  labor;  but  after  five  years  the  school  was 
closed  in  1780,  leaving  him  heavily  involved  in  debt,  but 
greatly  enriched  in  educational  experience. 

The  next  few  years  were  devoted  chiefly  to  authorship  as 
a  means  of  earning  a  livelihood.  He  turned  his  pedagogical 
studies  and  experience  to  good  account.  "  The  Evening 
Hour  of  a  Hermit,"  an  educational  treatise  in  the  form  of 
aphorisms,  appeared  in  1780.  In  1782  he  edited  for  a  few 


352  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

months  the  Swiss  News,  a  weekly  newspaper,  in  which  from 
time  to  time  he  touched  upon  educational  matters.  In  1787 
he  published  the  fourth  and  last  volume  of  "  Leonard  and 
Gertrude,"  an  educational  novel  descriptive  of  humble  scenes 
and  conditions  in  his  native  land. 

In  1798,  upon  the  recommendation  of  the  Swiss  directors, 
Pestalozzi  took  charge  of  nearly  a  hundred  destitute  and 
homeless  children  at  Stanz.  They  composed  a  heterogene- 
ous mass  that  would  have  been  appalling  to  any  one  with  less 
enthusiasm  than  Pestalozzi.  With  almost  superhuman  zeal 
he  addressed  himself  to  the  work  of  improving  their  condi- 
tion, and  in  the  space  of  a  few  months  wrought  so  great  a 
change  in  them  that  they  no  longer  seemed  the  same  beings. 
But  in  less  than  a  year  the  school  was  broken  up  by  the 
return  of  the  French  army,  which  had  previously  devastated 
the  district.  In  1799  Pestalozzi  wrote  a  letter  to  his  friend 
Gessner,  in  which  he  gave  a  detailed  account  of  the  work  at 
Stanz.  This  letter,  a  large  part  of  which  follows  this  sketch, 
is  interesting  for  the  light  it  throws  on  the  character  and 
pedagogy  of  Pestalozzi. 

In  1805  he  opened  a  school  at  Yverdun,  where  he  at- 
tained his  greatest  triumphs.  He  achieved  a  European  rep- 
utation, and  kings  and  philosophers  united  in  showing  him 
regard.  Yverdun  became  a  place  of  pilgrimage  for  philan- 
thropists and  educators  from  all  parts  of  Europe.  For  a 
time  the  progress,  happiness,  and  high  moral  tone  of  its 
pupils  made  the  school  at  once  a  model  and  an  inspiration  in 
education ;  but  at  length  in  1825  internal  dissension  brought 
the  work  to  an  ignominious  end.  The  following  year  Pesta- 
lozzi published  "  The  Song  of  the  Swan,"  in  which  he  gave 
a  clear  statement  of  his  educational  labors  and  principles. 
He  died  February  17,  1827. 

The  following  extracts  present  Pestalozzi's  educational 
system  with  clearness  and  fulness.  The  following  summary 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  353 

however,  prepared  by  his  biographer  Morf,  will  be  found 
very  helpful : 

"  i.  Sense-impression  is  the  foundation  of  instruction. 

"  2.  Language  must  be  connected  with  sense-impression. 

"  3.  The  time  for  learning  is  not  the  time  for  judgment 
and  criticism. 

"  4.  In  each  branch  instruction  must  begin  with  the 
simplest  elements,  and  proceed  gradually  by  following  the 
child's  developments ;  that  is,  bv  a  series  of  steps  which  are 
psychologically  connected. 

"  5.  A  pause  must  be  made  at  each  stage  of  the  instruction 
sufficiently  long  for  the  child  to  get  the  new  matter  thor- 
oughly into  his  grasp  and  under  his  control. 

"  6.  Teaching  must  follow  the  path  of  development,  and 
not  that  of  dogmatic  exposition 

"  7.  The  individuality  of  the  pupil  must  be  sacred  for  the 
teacher. 

"  8.  The  chief  aim  of  elementary  instruction  is  not  to  fur- 
nish the  child  with  knowledge  and  talents,  but  to  develop 
and  increase  the  powers  of  his  mind. 

"9.  To  knowledge  must  be  joined  power;  to  what  is 
known,  the  ability  to  turn  it  to  account 

"  10.  The  relations  between  master  and  pupil,  especially 
so  far  as  discipline  is  concerned,  must  be  established  and 
regulated  by  love. 

"  n.  Instruction  must  be  subordinated  to  the  higher  end 
of  education." 

SELECTIONS     FROM     VARIOUS      WRITINGS      OF 
PESTALOZZI. 

I.      DIARY,    1774. 

No  education  would  be  worth  a  jot  that  resulted  in  a  loss 
of  manliness  and  lightness  of  heart.  So  long  as  there,  is  joy 

PAINTER    FED.    Ess. —  23 


354  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

in  the  child's  face,  ardor  and  enthusiasm  in  all  his  games,  so 
long  as  happiness  accompanies  most  of  his  impressions,  there 
is  nothing  to  fear.  Short  moments  of  self -subjugation 
quickly  followed  by  new  interests  and  new  joys  do  not  dis- 
hearten. To  see  peace  and  happiness  resulting  from  habits 
of  order  and  obedience  is  the  true  preparation  for  social 
life. 

Be  in  no  hurry  to  get  on,  but  make  the  first  step  sound  be- 
fore moving ;  in  this  way  you  will  avoid  confusion  and  waste. 
Order,  exactness,  completion  —  alas,  not  thus  was  my  char- 
acter formed.  And  in  the  case  of  my  own  child  in  particu- 
lar, I  am  in  great  danger  of  being  blinded  by  his  quickness, 
and  rapid  progress,  and,  dazzled  by  the  unusual  extent  of 
his  knowledge,  of  forgetting  how  much  ignorance  lurks  be- 
hind this  apparent  development,  and  how  much  has  yet  to 
be  done  before  we  can  go  farther.  Completeness,  orderli- 
ness, absence  of  confusion  —  what  important  points ! 

Lead  your  child  out  into  Nature,  teach  him  on  the  hill- 
tops and  in  the  valleys.  There  he  will  listen  better,  and  the 
sense  of  freedom  will  give  him  more  strength  to  overcome 
difficulties.  But  in  these  hours  of  freedom  let  him  be 
taught  by  Nature  rather  than  by  you.  Let  him  fully  realize 
that  she  is  the  real  teacher  and  that  you,  with  your  art,  do 
nothing  more  than  walk  quietly  at  her  side.  Should  a  bird 
sing  or  an  insect  hum  on  a  leaf,  at  once  stop  your  talk ;  bird 
and  insect  are  teaching  him ;  you  may  be  silent. 

I  would  say  to  the  teacher,  Be  thoroughly  convinced  of 
the  immense  value  of  liberty;  do  not  let  vanity  make  you 
anxious  to  see  your  efforts  producing  premature  fruit;  let 
your  child  be  as  free  as  possible,  and  seek  diligently  for 
every  means  of  ensuring  his  liberty,  peace  of  mind,  and  good 
humor.  Teach  him  absolutely  nothing  by  words  that  you 
can  teach  him  by  the  things  themselves ;  let  him  see  for  him- 
self, hear,  find  out,  fall,  pick  himself  up,  make  mistakes ;  no 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  355 

word,  in  short,  when  action  is  possible.  What  he  can  do 
for  himself,  let  him  do  it;  let  him  be  always  occupied,  al- 
ways active,  and  let  the  time  you  leave  him  to  himself  rep- 
resent by  far  the  greatest  part  of  his  childhood.  You  will 
then  see  that  Nature  teaches  him  better  than  men. 

2.      THE   EVENING    HOUR   OF   A    HERMIT,    1780. 

1.  Man!  in  thyself,  in  the  inward  consciousness  of  thine 
own  strength,  is  the  instrument  intended  by  Nature  for  thy 
development. 

2.  The  path  of  Nature,  which  develops  the  forces  of  hu- 
manity, must  be  easy  and  open  to  all ;  education,  which  brings 
true  wisdom  and  peace  of  mind,  must  be  simple  and  within 
everybody's  reach. 

3.  Nature  develops  all  the  forces  of  humanity  by  exer- 
cising them ;  they  increase  with  use. 

4.  The  exercise  of  a  man's  faculties  and  talents,  to  be 
profitable,  must  follow  the  course  laid  down  by  Nature  for 
the  education  of  humanity. 

5.  This  is  why  the  man  who,  in  simplicity  and  innocence, 
exercises  his  forces  and  faculties  with  order,  calmness,  and 
steady  application,  is  naturally  led  to  true  human  wisdom; 
whereas  he  who  subverts  the  order  of  Nature,  and  thus 
breaks  the  due  connection  between  the  different  branches  of 
his  knowledge,  destroys  in  himself  not  only  the  true  basis  of 
knowledge,  but  the  very  need  of  such  a  basis,  and  becomes 
incapable  of  appreciating  the  advantages  of  truth. 

6.  Thou  who  wouldst  be  a  father  to  thy  child,  do  not 
expect  too  much  of  him  till  his  mind  has  been  strengthened 
by  practice  in  the  things  he  can  understand ;  and  beware  of 
harshness  and  constraint. 

7.  When  men  are  anxious  to  go  too  fast,  and  are  not 
satisfied  with  Nature's  method  of  development,  they   im- 


356  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

peril  their  inward  strength,  and  destroy  the  peace  and  har- 
mony of  their  souls. 

8.  When  men  rush  into  the  labyrinth  of  words,  formulas, 
and  opinions,  without  having  gained  a  progressive  knowl- 
edge of  the  realities  of  life,  their  minds  must  develop  on  this 
one  basis,  and  can  have  no  other  source  of  strength. 

9.  The  schools  hastily  substitute  an  artificial  method  of 
words  for  the  truer  method  of  Nature,  which  knows  no 
hurry,  and  is  content  to  wait. 

In  this  way  a  specious  form  of  development  is  produced, 
hiding  the  want  of  real  inward  strength,  but  satisfying 
times  like  our  own. 

10.  Man !  if  thou  seekest  the  truth  in  this  natural  order, 
thou  wilt  find  it  as  thou  hast  need  of  it  for  thy  position  and 
for  the  career  which  is  opening  before  thee. 

11.  The  pure  sentiment  of  truth  and  wisdom  is  formed 
in  the  narrow  circle  of  our  personal  relations,  the  circum- 
stances which  suggest  our  actions,  and  the  powers  we  need 
to  develop. 

12.  The  performance  of  acts  which  are  contrary  to  our 
inward  sense  of  right,  takes  from  us  the  power  of  recogniz- 
ing truth,  and  our  principles  and  impressions  lose  in  noble- 
ness, simplicity,  and  purity. 

13.  And  thus  all  human  wisdom  rests  on  the  strength 
of  a  heart  that  follows  truth,  and  all  human  happiness  on  this 
feeling  of  simplicity  and  innocence. 

14.  A  man's  domestic  relations  are  the  first  and  most 
important  of  his  nature. 

15.  A  man  works  at  his  calling,  and  bears  his  share  of 
the  public  burdens,  that  he  may  have  undisturbed  enjoyment 
of  his  home. 

1 6.  Thus  the  education  which  fits  a  man  for  his  profes- 
sion and  position  in  the  state  must  be  made  subordinate  to 
that  which  is  necessary  for  his  domestic  happiness. 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  357 

17.  The  home  is  the  true  basis  of  the  education  of  hu- 
manity. 

1 8.  It  is  the  home  that  gives  the  best  moral  training, 
whether  for  private  or  public  life. 

19.  A  man's  greatest  need  is  the  knowledge  of  God. 

20.  The  purest  pleasures  of  his  home  do  not  always  sat- 
isfy him. 

21.  His  weak,  impressionable  nature  is  powerless  with- 
out God  to  endure  constraint,  suffering,  and  death. 

22.  God  is  the  Father  of  humanity,  and  his  children  are 
immortal. 

23.  Sin  is  both  the  cause  and  effect  of  want  of  faith,  and 
is  an  act  opposed  to  what  a  man's  inmost  sense  of  good  and 
evil  tells  him  to  be  right. 

24.  It  is  because  humanity  believes  in  God  that  I  am 
contented  in  my  humble  dwelling. 

25.  I  base  all  liberty  on  justice,  but  I  see  no  certainty  of 
justice  in  the  world  so  long  as  men  are  wanting  in  upright- 
ness, piety,  and  love. 

26.  The  source  of  justice  and  of  every  other  blessing  in 
the  world,  the  source  of  all  brotherly  love  amongst  men, 
lies  in  the  great  conception  of  religion  that  we  are  the  chil- 
dren of  God. 

27.  That  man  of  God  who,  by  his  sufferings  and  death, 
restored  to  men  the  sense  that  God  is  their  Father,  is  indeed 
the  SsfViour  of  the  world.     His  teaching  is  justice  itself,  a 
simple  philosophy  of  practical  value  for  all,  the  revelation 
of  God  the  Father  to  his  erring  children. 

3.    swiss  NEWS,  1782. 

I.  The  child  at  its  mother's  breast  is  the  weakest  and 
most  dependent  of  human  creatures,  and  yet  it  is  already 
receiving  the  first  moral  impressions  of  love  and  gratitude. 


358  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

2.  Morality  is  nothing  but  a  result  of  the  development  in 
the  child  of  these  first  sentiments  of  love  and  gratitude. 

3.  The  first  development  of  the  child's  powers  should 
come  from  his  participation  in  the  work  of  his  home,  for 
this  work  is  necessarily  what  the  parents  understood  best, 
what  most  absorbs  their  attention,  and  what  they  are  most 
competent  to  teach. 

4.  But  even  if  this  were  not  so,  work  undertaken  to  sup- 
ply real  needs  would  be  just  as  truly  the  surest  foundation 
of  a  good  education. 

5.  To  engage  the  attention  of  the  child,  to  exercise  his 
judgments,  to  open  his  heart  to  noble  sentiments,  is,  I  think, 
the  chief  end  of  education ;  and  how  can  this  end  be  reached 
so  surely  as  by  training  the  child  as  early  as  possible  in  the 
various  daily  duties  of  domestic  life. 

6.  Nothing  makes  a  greater  call  on  the  attention  than 
work  in  general,  because  without  close  attention  no  work 
can  be  well  done ;  but  this  is  especially  true  of  work  which 
children  can  do  in  a  house,  for  it  varies  continually,  and  in 
a  thousand  ways,  and  compels  them  to  fix  their  attention  on 
a  great  number  of  different  objects. 

7.  Further,  it  is  by  doing  all  sorts  of  work  at  an  early 
age  that  a  man  acquires  a  sound  judgment ;  for  if  his  work 
is  to  succeed,  the  difficult  circumstances  under  which  it  has 
to  be  done,  must  be  thoroughly  understood;  nor  can  the 
child  help  being  struck  by  the  fact  that  failure  results  from 
errors  in  judgment. 

8.  Finally,  work  is  also  the  best  means  of  ennobling  the 
heart  of  man,  and  of  preparing  him  for  all  the  domestic  and 
social  virtues.     For,  to  teach  a  child  obedience,  unselfish- 
ness, and  patience  I  do  not  think  that  anything  can  be  bet- 
ter than  work  in  which  he  engages  regularly  with  the  rest 
of  the  family. 

9.  As  a  general  rule,  art  and  books  would  not  replace 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  359 

it  in  any  way.  The  best  story,  the  most  touching  picture 
the  child  finds  in  a  book  is  but  a  sort  of  dream  for  him,  some- 
thing unreal,  and  in  a  sense  untrue;  whereas  what  takes 
place  before  his  eyes,  in  his  own  house,  is  associated  with 
a  thousand  similar  occurrences,  with  all  his  own  experience 
as  well  as  that  of  his  parents  and  neighbors,  and  brings  him 
without  fail  to  a  true  knowledge  of  men,  and  develops  in  him 
a  thoroughly  observant  mind. 

4.      LETTER  ON  HIS  WORK  AT  STANZ,  1/99- 

I  wanted  to  prove  by  my  experiment  that  if  public  educa- 
tion is  to  have  any  real  value,  it  must  imitate  the  methods 
which  make  the  merit  of  domestic  education ;  for  it  is  my 
opinion  that  if  public  education  does  not  take  into  considera- 
tion the  circumstances  of  family  life,  and  everything  else 
that  bears  on  a  man's  general  education,  it  can  only  lead  to 
an  artificial  and  methodical  dwarfing  of  humanity. 

In  any  good  education,  the  mother  must  be  able  to  judge 
daily,  nay  hourly,  from  the  child's  eyes,  lips,  and  face,  of 
the  slightest  change  in  his  soul.  The  power  of  the  educator, 
too,  must  be  that  of  a  father,  quickened  by  the  general  cir- 
cumstances of  domestic  life. 

Such  was  the  foundation  upon  which  I  built.  I  deter- 
mined that  there  should  not  be  a  minute  in  the  day  when  my 
children  should  not  be  aware  from  my  face  and  my  lips  that 
my  heart  was  theirs,  that  their  happiness  was  my  happiness, 
and  their  pleasures  my  pleasures. 

Man  readily  accepts  what  is  good,  and  the  child  readily 
listens  to  it;  but  it  is  not  for  you  that  he  wants  it,  master 
and  educator,  but  for  himself.  The  good  to  which  you 
would  lead  him  must  not  depend  on  your  capricious  humor 
or  passion ;  it  must  be  a  good  which  is  good  in  itself  and  by 
the  nature  of  things,  and  which  the  child  can  recognize  as 


360  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

good.  He  must  feel  the  necessity  of  your  will  in  things 
which  concern  his  comfort  before  he  can  be  expected  to  obey 
it. 

Whenever  he  does  anything  gladly,  anything  that  brings 
him  honor,  anything  that  helps  to  realize  any  of  his  great 
hopes,  or  stimulates  his  powers,  and  enables  him  to  say 
with  truth,  /  can,  then  he  is  exercising  his  will. 

The  will,  however,  can  not  be  stimulated  by  mere  words ; 
its  action  must  depend  upon  those  feelings  and  powers  which 
are  the  result  of  general  culture.  Words  alone  can  not  give 
us  a  knowledge  of  things ;  they  are  only  useful  for  giving 
expression  to  what  we  have  in  our  mind. 

The  first  thing  to  be  done  was  to  win  the  confidence  and 
affection  of  the  children.  I  was  sure  that  if  I  succeeded  in 
doing  that,  all  the  rest  would  follow  of  itself.  Think  for  a 
moment  of  the  prejudices  of  the  people,  and  even  of  the 
children,  and  you  will  understand  the  difficulties  with  which 
I  had  to  contend. 

And  yet,  however  painful  this  want  of  help  and  support 
was  to  me,  it  was  favorable  to  the  success  of  my  undertak- 
ing, for  it  compelled  me  to  be  always  everything  for  my 
children.  I  was  alone  with  them  from  morning  till  night. 
It  was  my  hand  that  supplied  all  their  wants,  both  of  body 
and  soul.  All  needful  help,  consolation,  and  instruction 
they  received  direct  from  me.  Their  hands  were  in  mine, 
my  eyes  were  fixed  on  theirs. 

We  wept  and  smiled  together.  They  forgot  the  world  and 
Stanz ;  they  only  knew  that  they  were  with  me  and  I  with 
them.  We  shared  our  food  and  drink.  I  had  neither  fam- 
ily, friends,  nor  servants;  nothing  but  them.  I  was  with 
them  in  sickness  and  health,  and  when  they  slept.  I  was 
the  last  to  go  to  bed,  and  the  first  to  get  up.  In  the  bed- 
room I  prayed  with  them,  and,  at  their  own  request,  taught 
them  till  they  fell  asleep. 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  361 

This  is  how  it  was  that  these  children  gradually  became  so 
attached  to  me,  some  indeed  so  deeply  that  they  contradicted 
their  parents  and  friends  when  they  heard  evil  things  said 
about  me.  They  felt  that  I  was  being  treated  unfairly,  and 
loved  me,  I  think,  the  more  for  it.  But  of  what  avail  is  it 
for  the  young  nestlings  to  love  their  mother,  when  the  bird 
of  prey  that  is  bent  on  destroying  them  is  constantly  hover- 
ing near  ? 

For  most  of  them  study  was  something  entirely  new.  As 
soon  as  they  found  that  they  could  learn,  their  zeal  was  in- 
defatigable, and  in  a  few  weeks  children  who  had  never  be- 
fore opened  a  book,  and  could  hardly  repeat  a  Pater  Noster 
or  an  Aue,  would  study  the  whole  day  long  with  the  keenest 
interest.  Even  after  supper,  when  I  used  to  say  to  them, 
"  Children,  will  you  go  to  bed,  or  learn  something?"  they 
would  generally  answer,  especially  in  the  first  month  or  two, 
"  Learn  something."  It  is  true  that  afterwards,  when  they 
had  to  get  up  very  early,  it  was  not  quite  the  same. 

But  this  first  eagerness  did  much  towards  starting  the  es- 
tablishment on  the  right  lines,  and  making  the  studies  the 
success  they  ultimately  were  —  a  success,  indeed,  which  far 
surpassed  my  expectations.  And  yet  the  difficulties  in  the 
way  of  introducing  a  well-ordered  system  of  studies  were 
at  that  time  almost  unsurmountable. 

My  one  aim  was  to  make  their  new  life  in  common,  and 
their  new  powers,  awaken  a  feeling  of  brotherhood  amongst 
the  children,  and  make  them  affectionate,  just  and  consider- 
ate. I  reached  this  end  without  much  difficulty.  Amongst 
these  seventy  wild  beggar-children  there  soon  existed  such 
peace,  friendship,  and  cordial  relations  as  are  rare  even  be- 
tween actual  brothers  and  sisters. 

The  principle  to  which  I  endeavored  to  conform  all  my 
conduct  was  as  follows :  Endeavor,  first,  to  broaden  your 
children's  sympathies,  and,  by  satisfying  their  daily  needs, 


362  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

to  bring  love  and  kindness  into  such  unceasing  contact  with 
their  impressions  and  their  activity,  that  these  sentiments 
may  be  engrafted  in  their  hearts ;  then  try  to  give  them  such 
judgment  and  tact  as  will  enable  them  to  make  a  wise,  sure, 
and  abundant  use  of  these  virtues  in  the  circle  which  sur- 
rounds them. 

In  the  last  place,  do  not  hesitate  to  touch  on  the  difficult 
questions  of  good  and  evil,  and  the  words  connected  with 
them.  And  you  must  do  this  especially  in  connection  with 
the  ordinary  events  of  every  day,  upon  which  your  whole 
teaching  in  these  matters  must  be  founded,  so  that  the  chil- 
dren may  be  reminded  of  their  own  feelings,  and  supplied, 
as  it  were,  with  solid  facts  upon  which  to  base  their  concep- 
tion of  the  beauty  and  justice  of  the  moral  life. 

The  pedagogical  principle  which  says  that  we  must  win 
the  hearts  and  minds  of  our  children  by  words  alone,  with- 
out having  recourse  to  corporal  punishment,  is  certainly 
good,  and  applicable  under  favorable  conditions  and  circum- 
stances ;  but  with  children  of  such  widely  different  ages  as 
mine,  children  for  the  most  part  beggars,  and  all  full  of 
deeply-rooted  faults,  a  certain  amount  of  corporal  punish- 
ment was  inevitable,  especially  as  I  was  anxious  to  arrive 
surely,  speedily,  and  by  the  simplest  means,  at  gaining  an  in- 
fluence over  them  all,  for  the  sake  of  putting  them  all  in  the 
right  road.  I  was  compelled  to  punish  them,  but  it  would  be 
a  mistake  to  suppose  that  I  thereby,  in  any  way,  lost  the 
confidence  of  my  pupils. 

Elementary  moral  education,  considered  as  a  whole,  in- 
cludes three  distinct  parts :  the  children's  moral  sense  must 
first  be  aroused  by  their  feelings  being  made  active  and 
pure ;  then  they  must  be  exercised  in  self-control,  and  taught 
to  take  interest  in  whatever  is  just  and  good ;  finally,  they 
must  be  brought  to  form  for  themselves,  by  reflection  and 
comparison,  a  just  notion  of  the  moral  rights  and  duties 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZI  363 

which  are  theirs  by  reason  of  their  position  and  surround- 
ings. 

I  have  generally  found  that  great,  noble,  and  high 
thoughts  are  indispensable  for  developing  wisdom  and  firm- 
ness of  character.  Such  instruction  must  be  complete  in  the 
sense  that  it  must  take  account  of  all  our  aptitudes  and  all 
our  circumstances ;  it  must  be  conducted,  too,  in  a  truly 
psychological  spirit,  that  is  to  say,  simply,  lovingly,  ener- 
getically, and  calmly.  Then,  by  its  very  nature,  it  produces 
an  enlightened  and  delicate  feeling  for  everything  true  and 
good,  and  brings  to  light  a  number  of  accessory  and  depend- 
ent truths,  which  are  forthwith  accepted  and  assimilated  by 
the  human  soul,  even  in  the  case  of  those  who  could  not 
express  those  truths  in  words. 

I  believe  that  the  first  development  of  thought  in  the  child 
is  very  much  disturbed  by  a  wordy  system  of  teaching, 
which  is  not  adapted  either  to  his  faculties  or  the  circum- 
stances of  his  life.  According  to  my  experience,  success  de- 
pends upon  whether  what  is  taught  to  children  commends 
itself  to  them  as  true,  through  being  closely  connected  with 
their  own  personal  observation  and  experience.  Without 
this  foundation  truth  must  seem  to  them  to  be  little  better 
than  a  plaything,  which  is  beyond  their  comprehension,  and 
therefore  a  burden. 

Human  knowledge  derives  its  real  advantages  from  the 
solidity  of  the  foundations  on  which  it  rests.  The  man  who 
knows  a  great  deal  must  be  stronger  and  must  work  harder 
than  others,  if  he  is  to  bring  his  knowledge  into  harmony 
with  his  nature  and  with  the  circumstances  of  his  life.  If 
he  does  not  do  this,  his  knowledge  is  but  a  delusive  will-o'- 
the-wisp,  and  will  often  rob  him  of  such  ordinary  pleasures 
of  life  as  even  the  most  ignorant  man,  if  he  have  but  com- 
mon sense,  can  make  quite  sure  of. 


364  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZ1 

5.      THE   SONG   OF   THE   SWAN,    1826. 

The  idea  of  elementary  education,  to  which  I  have  devoted 
my  life,  consists  in  re-establishing  the  course  of  Nature,  and 
in  developing  and  improving  the  tendencies  and  powers  of 
humanity. 

But  what  is  human  nature?  It  is,  at  bottom,  that  which 
distinguishes  the  man  from  the  animal,  that  which  should 
predominate  and  control  whatever  they  have  in  common. 
Thus  elementary  education  must  aim  at  developing  heart, 
mind,  and  body  in  such  a  way  as  to  bring  the  flesh  into  sub- 
jection to  the  spirit. 

Now  it  is  evident  that  this  development  must  follow  a 
certain  course,  that  this  course  must  be  the  course  of  Na- 
ture, and  that  it  is  regulated  by  immutable  laws. 

Indeed,  however  great  the  diversities  of  men  may  be, 
they  do  not  in  any  way  affect  either  the  unity  of  human 
nature  or  the  universality  of  the  laws  which  govern  its  de- 
velopment. 

These  laws  apply  to  the  whole  of  man's  nature,  and  serve 
to  maintain  the  necessary  harmony  between  his  heart,  his 
intellect,  and  his  physical  powers.  Any  educational  method 
which  neglects  either  of  these  three  sides,  does  but  en- 
courage a  partial  development.  False  to  Nature,  it  produces 
no  real  and  lasting  results ;  it  is  as  sounding  brass  or  a  tink- 
ling cymbal,  and  exercises  a  fatal  influence  on  the  harmony 
of  the  natural  development. 

The  idea  of  elementary  education  involves  the  equilibrium 
of  a  man's  powers,  and  the  equilibrium  of  the  powers  in- 
volves the  natural  development  of  each  of  them.  Each 
power  develops  according  to  the  particular  laws  of  its  nature, 
which  laws  are  not  the  same  for  heart,  mind,  and  body. 

And  yet  all  human  powers  may  be  developed  in  the  sim- 
plest way  by  use.  Thus  a  man  lays  the  foundation  of  his 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZ1  365 

moral  life  of  love  and  faith,  by  the  practice  of  these  vir- 
tues ;  of  his  intellectual  life  of  thought,  by  thinking ;  of  his 
industrial  life,  by  making  use  of  his  physical  powers. 

Indeed,  man  is  impelled  by  the  very  nature  of  the  powers 
he  possesses  to  use  and  train  them,  and  thus  to  develop  and 
improve  them,  as  far  at  least  as  they  are  susceptible  of  de- 
velopment and  improvement.  These  powers  exist  at  first 
but  in  germ,  but  the  desire  to  use  them  increases  with  every 
successful  attempt,  though  it  decreases  and  sometimes  dis- 
appears with  failure,  especially  if  the  failure  should  cause 
suffering. 

Further,  the  idea  of  elementary  education  consists  in  so 
regulating  the  use  of  the  different  powers  that  every  effort 
shall  succeed,  and  none  fail ;  and  this  must  be  the  case  no  less 
with  the  intellectual  and  the  physical  than  with  the  moral 
powers. 

The  natural  means  for  this  early  education  are  to  be  looked 
for  in  the  enlightened  love,  faith,  and  tenderness  of  parents, 
made  wise  by  a  knowledge  of  all  the  conquests  humanity  has 
won. 

The  method  of  Nature  is,  in  its  principle,  holy  and  divine, 
but  if  left  to  itself,  it  is  often  disturbed  and  perverted  by  the 
predominance  of  the  animal  instincts.  Our  duty,  our  heart's 
chief  desire,  the  aim  of  our  faith  and  wisdom,  should  be  to 
keep  it  truly  human,  to  quicken  it  by  means  of  the  divine 
element  within  us. 

The  first  cares  of  a  mother  for  her  child  are  for  its  physi- 
cal needs ;  she  satisfies  these  with  unfailing  tenderness,  en- 
joys the  child's  contentment,  smiles  at  it  with  love,  and  re- 
ceives an  answering  smile  of  love,  trust,  and  gratitude. 
These  are  the  first  manifestations  of  the  moral  and  re- 
ligious development. 

But  the  child  must  also  feel  the  peace  which  proceeds 
from  satisfied  needs ;  this  peace  of  the  soul  is  indeed  an  es- 


366  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

sential  condition  of  the  moral  development.  It  is  no  sooner 
replaced  by  anxiety  and  trouble  than  love,  trust,  and  grati- 
tude give  way  to  selfishness,  pride,  and  other  evil  passions. 

When  the  mother  succeeds  in  keeping  the  child  contented, 
the  benefit  is  felt  by  every  member  of  the  family.  The  home 
becomes  a  center  of  moral  and  religious  life,  and  the  child, 
whose  trust  in  its  parents  nothing  can  shake,  loves  what  they 
love,  believes  what  they  believe,  and  worships  the  same  God 
and  Savior. 

But  when  this  peace  is  wanting  from  the  very  cradle,  the 
home,  troubled  in  every  part,  is  no  longer  a  sanctuary  of 
peace  and  happiness,  and  its  good  influence  on  the  moral  and 
religious  development  disappears. 

The  starting-point  of  thought  is  sense-perception,  that  is 
to  say,  the  direct  impression  produced  by  the  world  on  our 
internal  and  external  senses. 

Thus  the  power  of  thinking  is  formed  and  developed  first 
of  all  by  the  impressions  of  the  moral  world  upon  our  moral 
sense  and  by  those  of  the  physical  world  upon  our  bodily 
senses. 

These  impressions,  acting  on  the  understanding  of  the 
child,  give  him  his  first  ideas,  and  at  the  same  time  awaken 
in  him  the  desire  to  express  them,  first  by  signs,  then  by 
words. 

To  speak  we  must  have  not  only  ideas,  but  practiced  and 
supple  organs.  And  further,  we  can  only  speak  clearly  and 
exactly  of  those  things  from  which  we  have  received  clear 
and  exact  impressions. 

To  teach  a  child  to  talk,  then,  we  must  first  make  him  see, 
hear,  and  touch  many  things,  and  especially  things  which 
please  him,  so  that  he  may  readily  give  his  attention  to  them ; 
we  must  also  make  him  observe  them  in  order,  observing 
each  thoroughly  before  he  proceeds  to  another  At  the  same 
time  he  must  have  constant  practice  in  putting  his  impres- 


SELECTIONS  FROM  PESTALOZZl  367 

sions  into  words.  All  this  is  what  a  good  mother  does  for 
her  child  when  it  is  beginning  to  speak. 

Afterwards  a  foreign  or  dead  language  may  be  learned 
differently;  partly  because  the  organs  of  speech  have  al- 
ready been  trained,  partly  because  most  of  the  fundamental 
ideas  are  already  there,  and  lastly,  because  the  mother-tongue 
supplies  the  child  with  a  point  of  comparison. 

But  before  a  child  can  compare  things  and  exercise  his 
judgment  about  them,  his  thought  must  also  have  practice 
in  the  two  other  chief  elements  of  human  knowledge,  number 
and  form. 

The  fundamental  elements,  then,  that  serve  to  develop 
the  force  of  thought  are  language,  number,  and  form,  and 
it  is  the  business  of  education  to  present  these  elements  to 
the  child's  mind  in  the  simplest  possible  manner,  and  in 
psychological  and  progressive  order. 

Art,  practical  knowledge,  bodily  skill,  whatever  in  short 
enables  a  man  to  make  what  he  has  conceived  in  his  mind, 
is  what  we  call  the  industrial  life.  What  are  its  fundamental 
elements  ?  How  may  they  be  developed  ? 

Its  fundamental  elements  are  two :  the  power  of  the 
thought  within,  the  practical  skill  of  the  senses  and  limbs 
without.  To  be  completely  useful,  it  must  be  the  outcome 
of  the  harmonious  development  of  heart,  mind,  and  body. 
We  have  already  spoken  of  the  two  first ;  it  remains  for  us 
now  to  consider  the  fundamental  elements  of  physical  de- 
velopment. 

Just  as  elementary  exercises  in  number  and  form  are 
necessary  as  training  for  the  intellectual  life,  so  elementary 
exercises  in  art  and  practical  work  are  a  necessary  part  of 
that  physical  training  which  is  essential  to  success  in  the 
industrial  life.  Technical  apprenticeship  is  but  one  par- 
ticular form  of  this  training. 

And  further,  just  as  our  moral  and  intellectual  powers  are 


368  JOHN  HENRY  PESTALOZZI 

naturally  inclined  to  be  active,  and  attract  us  to  whatever 
exercises  them,  so  our  industrial  powers  have  a  similar  nat- 
ural tendency,  and  attract  us  to  whatever  exercises  and  de- 
velops them. 

The  physical  instinct  which  leads  us  to  use  our  senses  and 
limbs  is  generally  connected  with  our  animal  nature,  and 
needs  no  assistance  from  us.  But  this  instinct  must  be 
subordinated  to  the  moral  and  intellectual  elements  which 
constitute  the  superiority  of  human  nature.  To  bring  about 
this  subordination  is  the  essential  work  of  education. 

It  consists  in  developing,  according  to  the  natural  law, 
the  child's  various  powers,  moral,  intellectual,  and  physical, 
with  such  subordination  as  is  necessary  to  their  perfect 
equilibrium. 

This  equilibrium  alone  can  produce  a  peaceful,  happy  life, 
and  one  likely  to  profit  the  general  welfare.  Piety,  faith, 
and  love  bring  a  man  peace,  and  are  indeed  its  conditions, 
for  without  these  virtues  the  highest  development  of  intel- 
lect, art  or  industry  brings  no  rest,  but  leaves  the  man  full 
of  trouble,  uneasiness,  and  discontent. 


XXIV.     FREDERICK  FROEBEL 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

The  most  illustrious  disciple  of  Pestalozzi  was  Frederick 
Froebel,  who  was  born  in  Thuringia,  April  21,  1782.  Owing 
to  the  early  death  of  his  mother,  his  childhood  training  was 
sadly  neglected.  At  the  village  school,  which  he  entered  in 
due  time,  he  received  religious  impressions  that  never  left 
him.  At  the  age  of  ten  years  he  went  to  live  with  an  uncle, 
in  whose  home  he  found  the  kindness  and  sympathy  that  his 
earlier  childhood  had  missed.  He  entered  the  town  school 
of  Stadt-Ilm,  but  the  teacher,  an  old-time  mechanical  driller, 
failed  to  reach  the  inner  nature  of  his  gifted  pupil. 

At  the  age  of  fifteen  Froebel  became  a  forester's  appren- 
tice. Not  receiving  the  instruction  he  had  a  right  to  ex- 
pect, he  was  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  and  by  means 
of  the  books  at  hand  he  made  considerable  attainments  in 
the  forester's  art.  He  was  especially  fond  of  botany.  "  My 
church  religion,"  he  wrote,  "  changed  into  a  religious  life 
in  Nature,  and  in  the  last  half-year  I  lived  entirely  in  and 
with  plants,  which  attracted  me  wonderfully,  without  how- 
ever the  meaning  of  the  inner  life  of  the  plant-world  yet 
dawning  on  me." 

In  1799  he  entered  the  University  of  Jena,  where  he  at- 
tended lectures  on  mathematics,  botany,  natural  history, 
physics,  chemistry,  and  architecture.  Several  years  were 
spent  in  various  employments  without  yielding  him  either 
much  profit  or  peace  of  mind.  In  1805  we  find  him  in 
Frankfort  with  an  architect.  Then  the  turning  point  in  his 

PAINTER  FED.  Ess. —    24  369 


370  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

life  came.  He  was  offered  a  position  as  teacher;  and  the 
ecstasy  he  felt,  as  he  stood  for  the  first  time  in  the  presence 
of  the  school,  convinced  him  that  he  had  found  his  place. 
To  use  his  own  expression,  "  The  fish  was  in  the  water." 

In  1808  he  went  to  Yverdun,  and  spent  two  years  with 
Pestalozzi.  He  took  with  him  three  pupils,  of  whom  he 
had  charge  as  tutor.  Thus  he  became  thoroughly  ac- 
quainted with  Pestalozzi's  system,  which  in  its  essential  fea- 
tures he  cordially  adopted,  but  which  he  also  supplemented 
and  improved.  Afterward  feeling  the  necessity  of  increas- 
ing his  store  of  knowledge,  he  studied  at  the  universities  of 
Gottingen  and  Berlin.  In  1813  he  joined  the  Prussian  army, 
and  took  an  active  part  in  the  campaign  against  Napoleon. 
After  the  close  of  the  war  he  established  a  school  at  Keilhau 
in  1817,  in  which  he  followed  "the  principle  of  cultivating 
the  self-activity  of  the  pupil  by  connecting  manual  labor 
with  every  study."  After  a  temporary  success,  the  enter- 
prise, on  political  and  religious  grounds,  was  opposed  by  the 
Prussian  government,  and  in  1831  Froebel  was  forced  to 
abandon  it. 

It  was  during  his  work  at  Keilhau  that  Froebel  published 
his  great  work,  from  which  the  following  extracts  are  taken. 
The  full  title  of  the  work  is  as  follows :  "  The  Education 
of  Man,  the  Art  of  Education,  Instruction  and  Training, 
Aimed  at  in  the  German  Educational  Institute  at  Keilhau, 
set  forth  by  its  Principal,  F.  W.  A.  Froebel."  It  is  a  work 
of  profound  thought,  requiring  and  repaying  repeated  peru- 
sal. "  His  great  word,"  to  adopt  the  judgment  of  Dr.  W.  T. 
Harris,  "  is  inner  connection.  There  must  be  an  inner  con- 
nection between  the  pupil's  mind  and  the  objects  which  he 
studies,  and  this  shall  determine  what  to  study.  There  must 
be  an  inner  connection  in  those  objects  among  themselves 
which  determines  their  succession  and  the  order  in  which 
they  are  to  be  taken  up  in  the  course  of  instruction.  Finally, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  371 

there  is  an  inner  connection  within  the  soul  that  unites  the 
faculties  of  feeling,  perception,  phantasy,  thought,  and  voli- 
tion, and  determines  the  law  of  their  unfolding.  Inner  con- 
nection is  in  fact  the  law  of  development,  the  principle  of  ev- 
olution, and  Froebel  is  the  educational  reformer  who  has 
done  more  than  all  the  rest  to  make  valid  in  education  what 
the  Germans  call  the  '  developing  method.'  " 

After  a  varied  experience  at  Keilhau,  extending  through 
nearly  fifteen  years,  Froebel  came  to  the  conclusion  that  a 
change  in  the  methods  of  early  instruction  was  necessary 
to  a  thorough  educational  reform.  Carefully  considering  the 
ways  of  children,  he  saw  that  they  delight  in  movement; 
that  they  use  their  senses ;  that  they  observe ;  that  they  invent 
and  construct.  All  this  activity  he  proposed  to  turn  to  ac- 
count in  the  interest  of  education.  This  led  to  the  founding 
of  the  kindergarten  —  a  school  which  receives  children  at  a 
very  early  age,  and  by  systematizing  their  plays,  directing 
their  activity,  and  giving  order  to  their  ideas,  develops  their 
faculties  harmoniously,  and  prepares  them  for  the  work  of 
the  ordinary  school. 

Froebel  died  June  21,  1852.  "  The  fame  of  knowledge," 
it  was  said  over  his  grave,  "  was  not  his  ambition.  Glow- 
ing love  for  mankind,  for  the  people,  left  him  neither  rest  nor 
quiet.  After  he  had  offered  his  life  for  his  native  land  in 
the  wars  of  freedom,  he  turned  with  the  same  enthusiasm 
which  surrenders  and  sacrifices  for  the  highest  thought,  to 
the  aim  of  cultivating  the  people  and  youth.  And  how  many 
brave  men  he  has  educated,  who  honor  his  memory  and  bless 
his  name  1 " 


373  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

SELECTION    FROM    FROEBEL. 

THE   EDUCATION    OF    MAN. 

t.  In  all  things  there  lives  and  reigns  an  eternal  law. 
T<iis  all-controlling  law  is  necessarily  based  on  an  all-pervad- 
ing, energetic,  living,  self-conscious,  and  hence  eternal  unity. 
This  Unity  is  God.  All  things  have  come  from  the  divine. 
Unity,  from  God,  and  have  their  origin  in  the  divine  Unity, 
in  God  alone.  God  is  the  sole  source  of  all  things.  In  all 
things  there  lives  and  reigns  the  divine  Unity,  God.  All 
things  live  and  have  their  being  in  and  through  the  divine 
Unity,  in  and  through  God.  All  things  are  only  through 
the  divine  effluence  that  lives  in  them.  The  divine  effluence 
that  lives  in  each  thing  is  the  essence  of  each  thing. 

2.  It  is  the  destiny  and  lifework  of  all  things  to  unfold 
their  essence,  hence  their  divine  being,  and  therefore  the 
divine  Unity  itself  —  to  reveal  God  in  their  external  and 
transient  being.     It  is  the  special  destiny  and  life-work  of 
man,  as  an  intelligent  and  rational  being,  to  become  fully, 
vividly,  and  clearly  conscious  of  his  essence,  of  the  divine 
effluence  in  him,  and  therefore,  of  God ;  to  become  fully, 
vividly,  and  clearly  conscious  of  his  destiny  and  life-work ; 
and  to  accomplish  this,  to  render  it  (his  essence)  active,  to 
reveal  it  in  his  own  life  with  self-determination  and  freedom. 
Education  consists  in  leading  man,  as  a  thinking,  intelligent 
being,  growing  into  self -consciousness,  to  a  pure  and  unsul- 
lied, conscious  and  free  representation  of  the  inner  law  of 
divine  Unity,  and  in  teaching  him  ways  and  means  thereto. 

3.  The  knowledge  of  that  eternal  law,  the  insight  into  its 
origin,  into  its  essence,  into  the  totality,  the  connection,  and 
intensity  of  its  effects,  the  knowledge  of  life  in  its  totality, 
constitute  science,  the  science  of  life;  and,  referred  by  the 


SELECTION  FROM  FROEBEL  373 

self-conscious,  thinking,  intelligent  being  to  representation 
and  practice  through  and  in  himself,  this  becomes  the  science 
of  education. 

The  system  of  directions,  derived  from  the  knowledge  and 
study  of  that  law,  to  guide  thinking,  intelligent  beings  in  the 
apprehension  of  their  life-work  and  in  the  accomplishment 
of  their  destiny,  is  the  theory  of  education.  The  self-active 
application  of  this  knowledge  in  the  direct  development  and 
cultivation  of  rational  beings  toward  the  attainment  of  their 
destiny,  is  the  practice  of  education.  The  object  of  educa- 
tion is  the  realization  of  a  faithful,  pure,  inviolate,  and  hence 
holy  life.  Knowledge  and  application,  consciousness  and 
realization  in  life,  united  in  the  service  of  a  faithful,  pure, 
and  holy  life,  constitute  the  wisdom  of  life,  pure  wisdom. 

4.  By  education,  then,  the  divine  essence  of  man  should 
be  unfolded,  brought  out,  lifted  into  consciousness,  and  man 
himself  raised  into  free,  conscious  obedience  to  the  divine 
principle  that  lives  in  him,  and  to  a  free  representation  of 
this  principle  in  his  life.     Education  as  a  whole,  by  means  of 
instruction  and  training,  should  bring  to  man's  conscious- 
ness, and  render  efficient  in  his  life,  the  fact  that  man  and 
nature  proceed  from  God  and  are  conditioned  by  him  —  that 
both  have  their  being  in  God.     Education  should  lead  and 
guide  man  to  clearness  concerning  himself  and  in  himself, 
to  peace  with  nature,  and  to  unity  with  God;  hence,  it  should 
lift  him  to  a  knowledge  of  himself  and  of  mankind,  to  a 
knowledge  of  God  and  of  nature,  and  to  the  pure  and  holy 
life  to  which  such  knowledge  leads. 

5.  Education  in  instruction  and  training,  originally  and 
in  its  first  principles,  should  necessarily  be  passive,  following 
with  due  protection,  not  prescriptive,  categorical,  or  inter- 
fering.    Indeed,  in  its  very  essence,  education  should  have 
these  characteristics;  for  the  undisturbed  operation  of  the 
divine  Unity  is  necessarily  good  —  can  not  be  otherwise  than 


374  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

good.  This  necessity  implies  that  the  young  human  being  — 
as  it  were,  still  in  process  of  creation  —  would  seek,  although 
still  unconsciously,  as  a  product  of  nature,  yet  decidedly  and 
surely,  that  which  is  in  itself  best ;  and,  moreover,  in  a  form 
wholly  adapted  to  his  condition,  as  well  as  to  his  disposi- 
tion, his  powers,  and  means.  Thus  the  duckling  hastens  to 
the  pond  and  into  the  water,  while  the  young  chicken 
scratches  the  ground,  and  the  young  swallow  catches  its  food 
upon  the  wing  and  scarcely  ever  touches  the  ground. 

6.  The  prescriptive,  interfering  education,  indeed,  can  be 
justified  only  on  two  grounds;  either  because  it  teaches  the 
clear,  living  thought,  self-evident  truth,  or  because  it  holds 
up  a  life  whose  ideal  value  has  been  established  in  experience. 
But,  where  self-evident,  living,  absolute  truth  rules,  the  eter- 
nal principle  itself  reigns,  as  it  were,  and  will  on  this  account 
maintain  a  passive,    following  character.     For  the  living 
thought,  the  eternal  divine  principle  as  such  demands  and  re- 
quires free  self-activity  and  self-determination  on  the  part 
of  man,  the  being  created  for  freedom  in  the  image  of  God. 

7.  Again,  a  life  whose  ideal  value  has  been  perfectly  es- 
tablished in  experience  never  aims  to  serve  as  model  in  its 
form,  but  only  in  its  essence,  in  its  spirit.    It  is  the  greatest 
mistake  to  suppose  that  spiritual,  human  perfection  can  serve 
as  model  in  its  form.    This  accounts  for  the  common  experi- 
ence that  the  taking  of  such  external  manifestations  of  per- 
fection as  examples,  instead  of  elevating  mankind,  checks, 
nay,  represses,  its  development. 

8.  In  good   education,   in  genuine  instruction,  in  true 
training,  necessity  should  call  forth  freedom ;  law,  self-deter- 
mination ;  external  compulsion,  inner  free-will ;  external  hate, 
inner  love.     Where  hatred  brings  forth  hatred ;  law,  dis- 
honesty and  crime ;  compulsion,  slavery ;  necessity,  serviture ; 
where  oppression  destroys  and  debases;  where  severity  and 
harshness  give  rise  to  stubbornness  and  deceit  —  all  educa- 


SELECTION  FROM  FROEBEL          375 

tion  is  abortive.  In  order  to  avoid  the  latter  and  to  secure 
the  former,  all  prescription  should  be  adapted  to  the  pupil's 
nature  and  needs,  and  secure  his  cooperation.  This  is  the 
case  when  all  education  in  instruction  and  training,  in  spite 
of  its  necessarily  categorical  character,  bears  in  all  details  and 
ramifications  the  irrefutable  and  irresistible  impress  that  the 
one  who  makes  the  demand  is  himself  strictly  and  unavoid- 
ably subject  to  an  eternally  ruling  law,  to  an  unavoidable 
eternal  necessity,  and  that,  therefore,  all  despotism  is 
banished. 

9.  All  true  education  in  training  and  instruction  should, 
therefore,  at  every  moment,  in  every  demand  and  regulation, 
be  simultaneously  double-sided  —  giving  and  taking,  uniting 
and  dividing,  prescribing  and  following,  active  and  passive, 
positive  yet  giving  scope,  firm  and  yielding;  and  the  pupil 
should  be  similarly  conditioned;  but  between  the  two,  be- 
tween educator  and  pupil,  between  request  and  obedience, 
there  should  invisibly  rule  a  third  something,  to  which  edu- 
cator and  pupil  are  equally  subject.    The  third  something  is 
the  right,  the  best,  necessarily  conditioned  and  expressed 
without  arbitrariness  in  the  circumstances.    The  calm  recog- 
nition, the  clear  knowledge,  and  the  serene,  cheerful  obedi- 
ence to  the  rule  of  this  third  something  is  the  particular  fea- 
ture that  should  be  constantly  and  clearly  manifest  in  the 
bearing  and  conduct  of  the  educator  and  teacher,  and  often 
firmly  and  sternly  emphasized  by  him.    The  child,  the  pupil, 
has  a  very  keen  feeling,  a  very  clear  apprehension,  and  rare- 
ly fails  to  distinguish  whether  what  the  educator,  the  teacher, 
or  the  father  says  or  requests  is  personal  or  arbitrary,  or 
whether  it  is  expressed  by  him  as  a  general  law  and  necessity. 

10.  The  representation  of  the  infinite  in  the  finite,  of  the 
eternal  in  the  temporal,  of  the  celestial  in  the  terrestrial,  of 
the  divine  in  and  through  man,  in  the  life  of  man  by  the 
nursing  of  his  originally  divine  nature,  confronts  us  unmis- 


376  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

takably  on  every  side  as  the  only  object,  the  only  aim  of  all 
education,  in  all  instruction  and  training.  Therefore  man 
should  be  viewed  from  this  only  true  standpoint  immediately 
with  his  appearance  on  earth ;  nay,  as  in  the  case  of  Mary, 
immediately  with  his  annunciation,  and  he  should  be  thus 
heeded  and  nursed  while  yet  invisible,  unborn. 

11.  The  debasing  illusion   that  man  works,   produces, 
creates  only  in  order  to  preserve  his  body,  in  order  to  secure 
food,  clothing,  and  shelter,  may  have  to  be  endured,  but 
should  not  be  diffused  and  propagated.     Primarily  and  in 
truth  man  works  only  that  his  spiritual,  divine  essence  may 
assume  outward  form,  and  that  thus  he  may  be  enabled  to 
recognize  his  own  spiritual,  divine  nature  and  the  innermost 
being  of  God.     Whatever  food,  clothing,  and  shelter  he  ob- 
tains  thereby   comes   to   him   as   an   insignificant    surplus. 
Therefore  Jesus  says,  "  Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  heaven," 
that  is,  the  realization  of  the  divine  spirit  in  your  life  and 
through  your  life,  and  whatever  else  your  finite  life  may  re- 
quire, will  be  added  unto  you. 

Yet  human  power  should  be  developed,  cultivated,  and 
manifested,  not  only  in  inner  repose,  as  religion  and  religious 
spirit ;  not  only  in  outward  efficiency,  as  work  and  industry ; 
but  also  —  withdrawing  upon  itself  and  its  own  resources  — 
in  abstinence,  temperance,  and  frugality.  Is  it  needful  to 
do  more  than  indicate  this  to  a  human  being  not  wholly  at 
variance  with  himself?  Where  religion,  industry  and  tem- 
perance, the  truly  undivided  trinity,  rule  in  harmony,  in  true 
pristine  unity,  there,  indeed,  is  heaven  upon  earth  —  peace, 
joy,  salvation,  grace,  blessedness. 

12.  Play  is  the  highest  phase  of  child-development  —  of 
human  development  at  this  period ;  for  it  is  self-active  repre- 
sentation of  the  inner  —  representation  of  the  inner  from 
inner  necessity  and  impulse.     Play  is  the  purest,  most  spir- 
itual activity  of  man  at  this  stage,  and,  at  the  same  time, 


SELECTION  FROM  FROEBEL          377 

typical  of  human  life  as  a  whole  —  of  the  inner  hidden  nat- 
ural life  in  man  and  all  things.  It  gives,  therefore,  joy,  free- 
dom, contentment,  inner  and  outer  rest,  peace  with  the  world. 
It  holds  the  sources  of  all  that  is  good.  A  child  that  plays 
thoroughly,  with  self-active  determination,  perseveringly  un- 
til physical  fatigue  forbids,  will  surely  be  a  thorough,  deter- 
mined man,  capable  of  self-sacrifice  for  the  promotion  of  the 
welfare  of  himself  and  others.  Is  not  the  most  beautiful 
expression  of  child-life  at  this  time  a  playing  child  ? —  a  child 
wholly  absorbed  in  his  play  ? —  a  child  that  has  fallen  asleep 
while  so  absorbed? 

13.  The  aim  and  object  of  parental  care,  in  the  domestic 
and  family  circle,  is  to  awaken  and  develop,  to  quicken  all  the 
powers  and  natural  gifts  of  the  child,  to  enable  all  the  mem- 
bers and  organs  of  man  to  fulfill  the  requirements  of  the 
child's  powers  and  gifts.     The  natural  mother  does  all  this 
instinctively,  without  instruction  and  direction;  but  this  is 
not  enough :  it  is  needful  that  she  should  do  it  consciously,  as 
a  conscious  being  acting  upon  another  being  which  is  grow- 
ing into  consciousness,  and  consciously  tending  toward  the 
continuous  development  of  the  human  being,  in  a  certain  in- 
ner living  connection. 

14.  The  child  —  your  child,   ye   fathers  —  follows   you 
wherever  you  are,  wherever  you  go,  in  whatever  you  do.    Do 
not  harshly  repel  him ;  show  no  impatience  about  his  ever- 
recurring  questions.     Every  harshly  repelling  word  crushes 
a  bud  or  shoot  of  his  tree  of  life.    Do  not,  however,  tell  him 
in  words  much  more  than  he  could  find  himself  without  your 
words.    For  it  is,  of  course,  easier  to  hear  the  answer  from 
another,  perhaps  to  only  half  hear  and  understand  it,  than 
it  is  to  seek  and  discover  it  himself.     To  have  found  one 
fourth  of  the  answer  by  his  own  effort  is  of  more  value  and 
importance  to  the  child  than  it  is  to  half  hear  and  half  under- 
stand it  in  the  words  of  another;  for  this  causes  mental  in- 


378  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

dolence.  Do  not,  therefore,  always  answer  your  children's 
questions  at  once  and  directly;  but,  as  soon  as  they  have 
gathered  sufficient  strength  and  experience,  furnish  them 
with  the  means  to  find  the  answers  in  the  sphere  of  their 
own  knowledge. 

15.  On  the  part  of  parents  and  educators  the  period  of 
infancy  demands  chiefly  fostering  care.     During  the  succeed- 
ing period  of  childhood,  which  looks  upon  man  predominant- 
ly as  a  unit,  and  would  lead  him  to  unity,  training  prevails. 
The  period  of  boyhood  leads  man  chiefly  to  the  consideration 
of  particular  relationships  and  individual  things,  in  order  to 
enable  him  later  on  to  discover  their  inner  unity.    The  inner 
tendencies  and  relationships  of  individual  things  and  con- 
ditions are  sought  and  established. 

Such  a  process  constitutes  the  school  in  the  widest  sense  of 
the  word.  The  school,  then,  leads  man  to  a  knowledge  of 
external  things,  and  of  their  nature  in  accordance  with  the 
particular  and  general  laws  that  lie  in  them ;  by  the  presen- 
tation of  the  external,  the  individual,  the  particular,  it  leads 
man  to  a  knowledge  of  the  internal,  of  unity,  of  the  universal. 
Therefore,  on  entering  the  period  of  boyhood,  man  becomes 
at  the  same  time  a  school-boy.  With  this  period  school  be- 
gins for  him,  be  it  in  the  home  or  out  of  it,  and  taught  by 
the  father,  the  members  of  the  family,  or  a  teacher.  School, 
then,  means  here  by  no  means  the  school-room,  nor  school- 
keeping,  but  the  conscious  communication  of  knowledge,  for 
a  definite  purpose  and  in  definite  inner  connection. 

1 6.  On  the  other  hand,  as  it  has  appeared  and  continues 
to  appear  in  every  aspect,  the  development  and  cultivation  of 
man,  for  the  attainment  of  his  destiny  and  the  fulfillment 
of  his  mission,  constitute  an  unbroken  whole,  steadily  and 
continuously  progressing,  gradually  ascending.    The  feeling 
of  community,  awakened  in  the  infant,  becomes  in  the  child 
impulse,  inclination;  these  lead  to  the  formation  of  the  dis- 


SELECTION  FROM  FROEBEL          379 

position  and  of  the  heart,  and  arouse  in  the  boy  his  intellect 
and  will.  To  give  firmness  to  the  will,  to  quicken  it,  and  to 
make  it  pure,  strong,  and  enduring,  in  a  life  of  pure  human- 
ity, is  the  chief  concern,  the  main  object  in  the  guidance  of 
the  boy,  in  instruction  and  the  school. 

17.  Will  is  the  mental  activity,  ever  consciously  proceed- 
ing from  a  definite  point  in  a  definite  direction  toward  a 
definite  object,  in  harmony  with  the  man's  nature  as  a  whole. 
This  statement  contains  everything,  and  indicates  all  that 
parent  and  educator,  teacher  and  school,  should  be  or  should 
give  to  the  boy  in  example  and  precept  during  these  years. 
The  starting-point  of  all  mental  activity  in  the  boy  should  be 
energetic  and  sound ;  the  source  whence  it  flows,  pure,  clear, 
and  ever-flowing;  the  direction,  simple,  definite;  the  object, 
fixed,  clear,  living  and  life-giving,  elevating,  worthy  of  the 
effort,  worthy  of  the  destiny  and  mission  of  man,  worthy  of 
his  essential  nature,  and  tending  to  develop  it  and  give  it  full 
expression. 

Instruction  in  example  and  in  words,  which  later  on  be- 
come precept  and  example,  furnishes  the  means  for  this. 
Neither  example  alone  nor  words  alone  will  do :  not  example 
alone,  for  it  is  particular  and  special,  and  the  word  is  needed 
to  give  to  particular  individual  examples  universal  appli- 
cability ;  not  words  alone,  for  example  is  needed  to  interpret 
and  explain  the  word  which  is  general,  spiritual,  and  of 
many  meanings.  But  instruction  and  example  alone  and  in 
themselves  are  not  sufficient:  they  must  meet  a  good,  pure 
heart,  and  this  is  an  outcome  of  proper  educational  influences 
in  childhood. 

1 8.  In  the  family  the  child  sees  the  parents  and  other 
members  at  work,  producing,  doing  something ;  the  same  he 
notices  with  adults  generally  in  life  and  in  those  active  in- 
terests with  which  his  family  is  concerned.     Consequently 
the  child,  at  this  stage,  would  like  himself  to  represent  what 


380  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

he  sees.  He  would  like  to  represent  —  and  tries  to  do  so  — 
all  he  sees  his  parents  and  other  adults  do  and  represent  in 
work,  all  which  he  thus  sees  represented  by  human  power 
and  human  skill. 

What  formerly  the  child  did  only  for  the  sake  of  the  ac- 
tivity, the  boy  now  does  for  the  sake  of  the  result  or  product 
of  his  activity ;  the  child's  instinct  of  activity  has  in  the  boy 
become  a  formative  instinct,  and  this  occupies  the  whole  out- 
ward life,  the  outward  manifestation  of  boy-life  at  this 
period.  How  cheerfully  and  eagerly  the  boy  and  the  girl 
at  this  age  begin  to  share  the  work  of  father  and  mother  — 
not  the  easy  work,  indeed,  but  the  difficult  work,  calling 
for  strength  and  labor ! 

19.  By  no  means,  however,  do  all  the  plays  and  occupa- 
tions of  boys  at  this  age  aim  at  the  representation  of  things ; 
on  the  contrary,  many  are  predominantly  mere  practice  and 
trials  of  strength,  and  many  aim  simply  at  display  of 
strength.  Nevertheless,  the  play  of  this  period  always  bears 
a  peculiar  character,  corresponding  with  its  inner  life.  For, 
while  during  the  previous  period  of  childhood  the  aim  of  play 
consisted  simply  in  activity  as  such,  its  aim  lies  now  in  a 
definite,  conscious  purpose;  it  seeks  representation  as  such, 
or  the  thing  to  be  represented  in  the  activity.  This  char- 
acter is  developed  more  and  more  in  the  free  boyish  games  as 
the  boys  advance  in  age. 

It  is  the  sense  of  rare  and  reliable  power,  the  sense  of  its 
increase,  both  as  an  individual  and  as  a  member  of  the  group, 
that  fills  the  boy  with  all-pervading,  jubilant  joy  during  these 
games.  It  is  by  no  means,  however,  only  the  physical  power 
that  is  fed  and  strengthened  in  these  games  f  intellectual  and 
moral  power,  too,  is  definitely  and  steadily  gained  and 
brought  under  control.  Indeed,  a  comparison  of  the  relative 
gains  of  the  mental  and  of  the  physical  phases  would  scarce- 
ly yield  the  palm  to  the  body.  Justice,  moderation,  self-con- 


SELECTION  FROM  FROEBEL          381 

trol,  truthfulness,  loyalty,  brotherly  love,  and,  again,  strict 
impartiality  —  who,  when  he  approaches  a  group  of  boys 
engaged  in  such  games,  could  fail  to  catch  the  fragrance  of 
these  delicious  blossomings  of  the  heart  and  mind,  and  of  a 
firm  will;  not  to  mention  the  beautiful,  though  perhaps  less 
fragrant  blossoms  of  courage,  perseverance,  resolution,  pru- 
dence, together  with  the  severe  elimination  of  indolent  indul- 
gence ?  Whoever  would  inhale  a  fresh,  quickening  breath  of 
life  should  visit  the  play-grounds  of  such  boys. 

20.  The  existence  of  the  present  teaches  man  the  exist- 
ence of  the  past.     This,  too,  which  was  before  he  was,  he 
would  know.     Then  there  is  developed  in  the  boy  at  this  age 
the  desire  and  craving  for  tales,  for  legends,  for  all  kinds  of 
stories,  and  later  on  for  historical  accounts.     This  craving, 
especially  in  its  first  appearance,  is  very  intense ;  so  much  so, 
that,  when  others  fail  to  gratify  it,  the  boys  seek  to  gratify  it 
themselves,  particularly  on  days  of  leisure,  and  in  times  when 
the  regular  employments  of  the  day  are  ended. 

21.  Man  is  by  no  means  naturally  bad,  nor  has  he  origi- 
nally bad  or  evil  qualities  and  tendencies ;  unless,  indeed,  we 
consider  as  naturally  evil,  bad,  and   faulty  the  finite,  the 
material,  the  transitory,  the  physical  as  such,  and  the  logical 
consequences  of  the  existing  of  these  phenomena,  namely, 
that  man  must  have  the  possibility  of  failure  in  order  to  be 
good  and  virtuous,  that  he  must  be  able  to  make  himself  a 
slave  in  order  to  be  truly  free.      Yet  these  things  are  the 
necessary  concomitants  of  the  manifestation  of  the  eternal 
in  the  temporal,  of  unity  in  diversity,  and  follow  necessarily 
from  man's  destiny  to  become  a  conscious,  reasonable,  and 
free  being. 

A  suppressed  or  perverted  good  quality  —  a  good  tend- 
ency, only  repressed,  misunderstood,  or  misguided  —  lies 
originally  at  the  bottom  of  every  shortcoming  in  man.  Hence 
the  only  and  infallible  remedy  for  counteracting  any  short- 


382  FREDERICK  FROEBEL 

coming  and  even  wickedness  is  to  find  the  originally  good 
source,  the  originally  good  side  of  the  human  being  that  has 
been  repressed,  disturbed,  or  misled  into  the  shortcoming, 
and  then  to  foster,  build  up,  and  properly  guide  this  good 
side.  Thus  the  shortcoming  will  at  last  disappear,  although 
it  may  involve  a  hard  struggle  against  habit,  but  not  against 
original  depravity  in  man ;  and  this  is  accomplished  so  much 
the  more  rapidly  and  surely  because  man  himself  tends  to 
abandon  his  shortcomings,  for  man  prefers  right  to  wrong. 


XXV.  HORACE  MANN. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

The  state  of  Massachusetts  has  been  the  pioneer  in  Ameri- 
can education.  It  was  the  first  of  the  colonies  to  establish 
public  schools  and  to  found  a  college.  From  1642,  when  the 
selectmen  of  every  town  were  enjoined  to  see  that  the  young 
were  instructed  in  "  the  English  tongue  and  a  knowledge  of 
the  capital  laws,"  Massachusetts  has  shown  an  interest  in 
education  by  the  passage  of  many  laws  designed  to  give 
greater  efficiency  to  the  public  schools.  But  it  was  due  prin- 
cipally to  the  efforts  of  one  person  that  between  1837  and 
1848  the  public  school  system  was  unified  and  brought  to  a 
higher  degree  of  efficiency  than  had  prevailed  before.  This 
person  was  Horace  Mann,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of 
American  educators.  To  natural  endowments  of  a  high 
order  he  added  an  invincible  zeal  in  behalf  of  popular  educa- 
tion, and  a  sublime  faith  in  its  possibilities  as  a  means  of 
uplifting  and  regenerating  society. 

Horace  Mann  was  born  in  Franklin,  Massachusetts,  May 
4,  1796.  With  admirable  energy  he  overcame  in  early  man- 
hood the  deficiencies  in  his  childhood  education  which  pov- 
erty and  constant  toil  had  rendered  inevitable.  Having 
learned  the  elements  of  Latin  and  Greek  from  an  itinerant 
school-master,  he  entered  the  sophomore  class  of  Brown  Uni- 
versity in  1816,  from  which  he  graduated  three  years  later 
with  the  highest  honors  of  his  class.  He  studied  law, 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1823,  and  four  years  later  was 
elected  to  the  legislature.  In  the  legislature,  to  which  he 

383 


384  HORACE  MANN 

was  re-elected  for  a  number  of  terms,  he  displayed  the  same 
integrity,  energy,  and  eloquence,  which  had  previously  prom- 
ised a  bright  career  at  the  bar.  His  moral  sense  was  largely 
developed,  and  he  showed  an  especial  interest  in  temperance, 
charity  and  education. 

In  1835  he  entered  upon  the  work  with  which  his  name 
is  chiefly  associated  and  in  which  he  rendered  the  greatest 
service  to  his  native  state  and  to  the  American  union.  In 
that  year  the  legislature  appointed  a  Board  of  Education  to 
revise  and  reorganize  the  common  school  system  of  the 
state.  Owing  to  various  forms  of  opposition,  it  was  a  work 
of  great  magnitude  and  peculiar  difficulty.  The  Board, 
which  was  composed  of  able  and  distinguished  men,  called 
Horace  Mann  to  be  its  secretary  —  a  position  that  made  him 
practically  the  state  superintendent  of  education.  Recogniz- 
ing at  once  the  responsibilities  and  opportunities  of  the  of- 
fice, he  gave  up  his  legal  and  political  career,  and  devoted 
himself  with  great  singleness  of  purpose  to  the  duties  of  his 
new  position.  He  visited  all  parts  of  the  state,  and  delivered 
able  and  enthusiastic  addresses ;  he  established  The  Common 
School  Journal  for  the  discussion  of  educational  questions ; 
but  above  all  other  agencies  for  reaching  and  molding  public 
opinion  must  be  placed  his  "  Annual  Reports,"  in  which  he 
treated  the  various  phases  of  education  in  a  practical  and 
masterful  manner.  To  a  comprehensive  grasp  of  the  subject 
he  joined  the  charm  of  an  eloquent  style  and  the  force  of  a 
deep  conviction. 

In  1848  he  was  elected  to  Congress  to  fill  the  vacancy 
caused  by  the  death  of  John  Quincy  Adams.  To  this  new 
field  he  carried  his  moral  enthusiasm  and  his  interest  in  edu- 
cation. In  1853,  giving  up  a  political  life,  he  accepted  the 
presidency  of  Antioch  College ;  and  during  his  brief  admin- 
istration of  six  years,  he  gave  the  institution  a  wise,  progres- 
sive, and  liberal  policy.  His  death,  which  occurred  August 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  385 

2,  1859,  cut  short  a  career  which  would  otherwise,  no  doubt, 
have  exerted  a  far-reaching  influence  in  the  field  of  higher 
education. 

The  following  extract  is  taken  from  his  twelfth  and  last 
"  Annual  Report,"  which  was  made  in  1848.  It  may  be  re- 
garded as  presenting  the  matured  convictions  resulting  from 
his  work  as  secretary  of  the  Board  of  Education.  He  does 
not  discuss  education  in  the  abstract,  but  in  its  relations  to 
the  material,  intellectual,  and  moral  welfare  of  society.  He 
had  been  charged  with  a  purpose  to  exclude  religion  from 
education ;  and  in  vindicating  himself  from  this  charge,  he 
lays  great  stress  upon  the  importance  of  religious  train- 
ing. The  extracts  given,  though  but  a  small  part  of  the 
Report,  present  its  essential  features,  and  will  serve  to  show 
his  fundamental  views,  and  the  masterful  grasp  and  the 
splendid  energy  with  which  he  asserted  and  maintained  them. 


SELECTION   FROM   HORACE   MANN. 

PHYSICAL,  INTELLECTUAL,  MORAL,  AND  RELIGIOUS  EDUCATION. 

Without  undervaluing  any  other  human  agency,  it  may 
be  safely  affirmed  that  the  common  school,  improved  and 
energized  as  it  can  easily  be,  may  become  the  most  effective 
and  benignant  of  all  the  forces  of  civilization.  Two  reasons 
sustain  this  position.  In  the  first  place,  there  is  a  universal- 
ity in  its  operation,  which  can  be  affirmed  of  no  other  insti- 
tution whatever.  If  administered  in  the  spirit  of  justice  and 
conciliation,  all  the  rising  generation  may  be  brought  within 
the  circle  of  its  reformatory  and  elevating  influences.  And, 
in  the  second  place,  the  materials  upon  which  it  operates  are 
so  pliant  and  ductile  as  to  be  susceptible  of  assuming  a 
greater  variety  of  forms  than  any  other  earthly  work  of 
the  Creator.  The  inflexibility  and  ruggedness  of  the  oak, 

PAINTER  PED.  Ess. —  25 


386  HORACE  MANN 

when  compared  with  the  lithe  sapling  or  the  tender  germ, 
are  but  feeble  emblems  to  typify  the  docility  of  childhood 
when  contrasted  with  the  obduracy  and  intractableness  of 
man.  It  is  these  inherent  advantages  of  the  common  school, 
which,  in  our  own  state,  have  produced  results  so  striking, 
from  a  system  so  imperfect,  and  an  administration  so  feeble. 
In  teaching  the  blind  and  the  deaf  and  dumb,  in  kindling  the 
latent  spark  of  intelligence  that  lurks  in  an  idiot's  mind,  and 
in  the  more  holy  work  of  reforming  abandoned  and  outcast 
children,  education  has  proved  what  it  can  do  by  glorious  ex- 
periments. These  wonders  it  has  done  in  its  infancy,  and 
with  the  lights  of  a  limited  experience;  but  when  its  facul- 
ties shall  be  fully  developed,  when  it  shall  be  trained  to 
wield  its  mighty  energies  for  the  protection  of  society 
against  the  giant  vices  which  now  invade  and  torment  it, 
—  against  intemperance,  avarice,  war,  slavery,  bigotry,  the 
woes  of  want,  and  the  wickedness  of  waste, —  then  there  will 
not  be  a  height  to  which  these  enemies  of  the  race  can  escape 
which  it  will  not  scale,  nor  a  Titan  among  them  all  whom  it 
will  not  slay. 

I  proceed,  then,  in  endeavoring  to  show  how  the  true  busi- 
ness of  the  schoolroom  connects  itself,  and  becomes  identical, 
with  the  great  interests  of  society.  The  former  is  the  in- 
fant, immature  state  of  those  interests ;  the  latter  their  de- 
veloped, adult  state.  As  "  the  child  is  father  to  the  man," 
so  may  the  training  of  the  schoolroom  expand  into  the  insti- 
tutions and  fortunes  of  the  state.  . 

Physical  Education. 

My  general  conclusion,  then,  under  this  head  is  that  it  is 
the  duty  of  all  the  governing  minds  in  society  —  whether  in 
office  or  out  of  it  —  to  diffuse  a  knowledge  of  these  beautiful 
and  beneficent  laws  of  health  and  life  throughout  the  length 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  3»7 

and  breadth  of  the  state ;  to  popularize  them ;  to  make  them, 
in  the  first  place,  the  common  acquisition  of  all,  and  through 
education  and  custom  the  common  inheritance  of  all,  so  that 
the  healthful  habits  naturally  growing  out  of  their  observ- 
ance shall  be  inbred  in  the  people,  exemplified  in  the  personal 
regime  of  each  individual,  incorporated  into  the  economy  of 
every  household,  observable  in  all  private  dwellings,  and  in 
all  public  edifices,  especially  in  those  buildings  which  are 
erected  by  capitalists  for  the  residence  of  their  work-people, 
or  for  renting  to  the  poorer  classes ;  obeyed  by  supplying 
cities  with  pure  water;  by  providing  public  baths,  public 
walks,  and  public  squares ;  by  rural  cemeteries ;  by  the  drain- 
age and  sewerage  of  populous  towns,  and  by  whatever  else 
may  promote  the  general  salubrity  of  the  atmosphere :  in  fine, 
by  a  religious  observance  of  all  those  sanitary  regulations 
with  which  modern  science  has  blessed  the  world. 

For  this  thorough  diffusion  of  sanitary  intelligence,  the 
common  school  is  the  only  agency.  It  is,  however,  an  ade- 
quate agency.  Let  human  physiology  be  introduced  as  an  in- 
dispensable branch  of  study  into  our  public  schools;  let  no 
teacher  be  approved  who  is  not  master  of  its  leading  prin- 
ciples, and  of  their  applications  to  the  varying  circumstances 
of  life ;  let  all  the  older  classes  in  the  schools  be  regularly  and 
rigidly  examined  upon  this  study  by  the  school-committees, 
— and  a  speedy  change  would  come  over  our  personal  habits, 
over  our  domestic  usages,  and  over  the  public  arrangements 
of  society.  Temperance  and  moderation  would  not  be  such 
strangers  at  the  table.  Fashion,  like  European  sovereigns, 
if  not  compelled  to  abdicate  and  fly,  would  be  forced  to  com- 
promise for  the  continual  possession  of  her  throne  by  the  sur- 
render to  her  subjects  of  many  of  their  natural  rights.  A 
sixth  order  of  architecture  would  be  invented, —  the  hygienic, 
—  which,  without  subtracting  at  all  from  the  beauty  of  any 
other  order,  would  add  a  new  element  of  utility  to  them 


388  HORACE  MANN 

all.  The  "  health  regulations  "  of  cities  would  be  issued  in 
a  revised  code, —  a  code  that  would  bear  the  scrutiny  of 
science.  And,  as  the  result  and  reward  of  all,  a  race  of  men 
and  women,  loftier  in  stature,  firmer  in  structure,  fairer  in 
form,  and  better  able  to  perform  the  duties  and  bear  the 
burdens  of  life,  would  revisit  the  earth.  The  minikin  speci- 
mens of  the  race,  who  now  go  on  dwindling  and  tapering 
from  parent  to  child,  would  reascend  to  manhood  and  wom- 
anhood. Just  in  proportion  as  the  laws  of  health  and  life 
were  discovered  and  obeyed,  would  pain,  disease,  insanity, 
and  untimely  death,  cease  from  among  men.  Consumption 
would  remain;  but  it  would  be  consumption  in  the  active 
sense. 

Intellectual  Education. 

Another  cardinal  object  which  the  government  of  Massa- 
chusetts, and  all  the  influential  men  in  the  state,  should  pro- 
pose to  themselves,  is  the  physical  well-being  of  all  the 
people, —  the  sufficiency,  comfort,  competence,  of  every  indi- 
vidual in  regard  to  food,  raiment,  and  shelter.  And  these 
necessaries  and  conveniences  of  life  should  be  obtained  by 
each  individual  for  himself,  or  by  each  family  for  themselves, 
rather  than  accepted  from  the  hand  of  charity  or  extorted  by 
poor  laws.  It  is  not  averred  that  this  most  desirable  result 
can,  in  all  instances,  be  obtained ;  but  it  is,  nevertheless,  the 
end  to  be  aimed  at. 

True  statesmanship  and  true  political  economy,  not  less 
than  true  philanthropy,  present  this  perfect  theory  as  the 
goal,  to  be  more  and  more  closely  approximated  by  our  im- 
perfect practice.  The  desire  to  achieve  such  a  result  can- 
not be  regarded  as  an  unreasonable  ambition ;  for,  though 
all  mankind  were  well  fed,  well  clothed,  and  well  housed, 
they  might  still  be  but  half  civilized. 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  389 

Our  ambition  as  a  state  should  trace  itself  to  a  different 
origin,  and  propose  to  itself  a  different  object.  Its  flame  should 
be  lighted  at  the  skies.  Its  radiance  and  its  warmth 
should  reach  the  darkest  and  the  coldest  abodes  of  men.  It 
should  seek  the  solution  of  such  problems  as  these :  To  what 
extent  can  competence  displace  pauperism?  How  nearly 
can  we  free  ourselves  from  the  low-minded  and  the  vicious, 
not  by  their  expatriation,  but  by  their  elevation?  To  what 
extent  can  the  resources  and  powers  of  nature  be  converted 
into  human  welfare,  the  peaceful  arts  of  life  be  advanced, 
and  the  vast  treasures  of  human  talent  and  genius  be  devel- 
oped? How  much  of  suffering,  in  all  its  forms,  can  be 
relieved?  or,  what  is  better  than  relief,  how  much  can  be 
prevented?  Cannot  the  classes  of  crimes  be  lessened  and 
the  number  of  criminals  in  each  class  be  diminished?  Our 
exemplars,  both  for  public  and  for  private  imitation,  should 
be  the  parables  of  the  lost  sheep  and  of  the  lost  piece  of 
silver. 

When  we  have  spread  competence  through  all  the  abodes 
of  poverty,  when  we  have  substituted  knowledge  for  igno- 
rance in  the  minds  of  the  whole  people,  when  we  have  re- 
formed the  vicious  and  reclaimed  the  criminal,  then  may 
we  invite  all  neighboring  nations  to  behold  the  spectacle,  and 
say  to  them,  in  the  conscious  elation  of  virtue,  "  Rejoice  with 
me,"  for  I  have  found  that  which  was  lost.  Until  that  day 
shall  arrive,  our  duties  will  not  be  wholly  fulfilled,  and  our 
ambition  will  have  new  honors  to  win.  .  .  . 

Surely  nothing  but  universal  education  can  counterwork 
this  tendency  to  the  domination  of  capital  and  the  servility  of 
labor.  If  one  class  possesses  all  the  wealth  and  education, 
while  the  residue  of  society  is  ignorant  and  poor,  it  matters 
not  by  what  name  the  relation  between  them  may  be  called ; 
the  latter,  in  fact  and  in  truth,  will  be  the  servile  dependants 
and  subjects  of  the  former.  But,  if  education  be  equably  dif- 


390  HORACE  MANN 

fused,  it  will  draw  property  after  it  by  the  strongest  of  all 
attractions;  for  such  a  thing  never  did  happen,  and  never 
can  happen,  as  that  an  intelligent  and  practical  body  of  men 
should  be  permanently  poor.  Property  and  labor  in  different 
classes  are  essentially  antagonistic;  but  property  and  labor 
in  the  same  class  are  essentially  fraternal.  The  people  of 
Massachusetts  have,  in  some  degree,  appreciated  the  truth, 
that  the  unexampled  prosperity  of  the  state  —  its  comfort,  its 
competence,  its  general  intelligence  and  virtue  —  is  attribu- 
table to  the  education,  more  or  less  perfect,  which  all  its  peo- 
ple have  received ;  but  are  they  sensible  of  a  fact  equally  im- 
portant, namely,  that  it  is  to  this  same  education  that 
two-thirds  of  the  people  are  indebted  for  not  being  to-day  the 
vassals  of  as  severe  a  tyranny,  in  the  form  of  capital,  as  the 
lower  classes  of  Europe  are  bound  to  in  the  form  of  brute 
force  ? 

Education,  then,  beyond  all  other  devices  of  human  origin, 
is  the  great  equalizer  of  the  conditions  of  men, —  the  balance- 
wheel  of  the  social  machinery.  I  do  not  here  mean  that  it 
so  elevates  the  moral  nature  as  to  make  men  disdain  and  ab- 
hor the  oppression  of  their  fellow-men.  This  idea  pertains 
to  another  of  its  attributes.  But  I  mean  that  it  gives  each 
man  the  independence  and  the  means  by  which  he  can  re- 
sist the  selfishness  of  other  men.  It  does  better  than  to  dis- 
arm the  poor  of  their  hostility  towards  the  rich :  it  prevents 
being  poor.  Agrarianism  is  the  revenge  of  poverty  against 
wealth.  The  wanton  destruction  of  the  property  of  others 
—  the  burning  of  hay-ricks  and  corn-ricks,  the  demolition  of 
machinery  because  it  supersedes  hand-labor,  the  sprinkling 
of  vitriol  on  rich  dresses  —  is  only  agrarianism  run  mad. 
Education  prevents  both  the  revenge  and  the  madness.  On 
•the  other  hand,  a  fellow-feeling  for  one's  class  or  caste  is 
the  common  instinct  of  hearts  not  wholly  sunk  in  selfish 
regards  for  person  or  family.  The  spread  of  education,  by 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  391 

enlarging  the  cultivated  class  or  caste,  will  open  a  wider 
area  over  which  the  social  feelings  will  expand;  and,  if  this 
education  should  be  universal  and  complete,  it  would  do  more 
than  all  things  else  to  obliterate  factitious  distinctions  in 
society. 

I  hold  all  past  achievements  of  the  human  mind  to  be 
rather  in  the  nature  of  prophecy  than  of  fulfilment, —  the 
first-fruits  of  the  beneficence  of  God  in  endowing  us  with  the 
faculties  of  perception,  comparison,  calculation,  and  causal- 
ity, rather  than  the  full  harvest  of  their  eventual  develop- 
ment. For  look  at  the  magnificent  creation  into  which  we 
have  been  brought,  and  at  the  adaptation  of  our  faculties  to 
understand,  admire,  and  use  it.  All  around  us  are  works 
worthy  of  an  infinite  God;  and  we  are  led,  by  irresistible 
evidence,  to  believe  that,  just  so  far  as  we  acquire  this 
knowledge,  we  shall  be  endued  with  his  power.  From  his- 
tory and  from  consciousness,  we  find  ourselves  capable  of 
ever-onward  improvement :  and  therefore  it  seems  to  be  a  de- 
nial of  first  principles  —  it  seems  no  better  than  impiety  — 
to  suppose  that  we  shall  ever  become  such  finished  scholars, 
that  the  works  of  the  All-wise  will  have  no  new  problem  for 
our  solution,  and  will,  therefore,  be  able  to  teach  us  no 
longer. 

Nor  is  it  any  less  than  impiety  to  suppose  that  we  shall 
ever  so  completely  enlist  the  powers  of  Nature  in  our  serv- 
ice, that  exhausted  Omnipotence  can  reward  our  indus- 
try with  no  further  bounties.  This  would  be  to  suppose  that 
we  shall  arrive  at  a  period  when  our  active  and  progressive 
natures  will  become  passive  and  stationary;  when  we  shall 
have  nothing  to  do  but  to  sit  in  indolent  and  inglorious  con- 
templation of  past  achievements ;  and  when,  all  aspirations 
having  been  lost  in  fruition,  we  shall  have  outlived  the  joys 
of  hope  and  the  rewards  of  effort,  and  no  new  glories  will 
beckon  us  onward  to  new  felicities. 


392  HORACE  MANN 

Moral  Education. 

Moral  education  is  a  primal  necessity  of  social  osstence. 
The  unrestrained  passions  of  men  are  not  only  homicidal,  but 
suicidal ;  and  a  community  without  a  conscience  would  soon 
extinguish  itself.  Even  with  a  natural  conscience,  how  often 
has  evil  triumphed  over  good !  From  the  beginning  of  time, 
wrong  has  followed  right,  as  the  shadow,  the  substance.  As 
the  relations  of  men  become  more  complex,  and  the  business 
of  the  world  more  extended,  new  opportunities  and  new 
temptations  for  wrong-doing  have  been  created.  With  the 
endearing  relations  of  parent  and  child  came  also  the  pos- 
sibility of  infanticide  and  parricide;  and  the  first  domestic 
altar  that  brothers  ever  reared  was  stained  with  fratricidal 
blood.  Following  close  upon  the  obligations  to  truth  came 
falsehood  and  perjury,  and  closer  still  upon  the  duty  of 
obedience  to  the  divine  law  came  disobedience.  With  the 
existence  of  private  relations  between  men  came  fraud ;  and 
with  the  existence  of  public  relations  between  nations  came 
aggression,  war,  and  slavery.  And  so,  just  in  proportion  as 
the  relations  of  life  became  more  numerous,  and  the  inter- 
ests of  society  more  various  and  manifold,  the  range  of  pos- 
sible and  of  actual  offenses  has  been  continually  enlarging. 
As  for  every  new  substance  there  may  be  a  new  shadow, 
so  for  every  new  law  there  may  be  a  new  transgres- 
sion. .  .  . 

The  race  has  existed  long  enough  to  try  many  experi- 
ments for  the  solution  of  this  greatest  problem  ever  sub- 
mitted to  its  hands ;  and  the  race  has  experimented,  without 
stint  of  time  or  circumscription  of  space  to  mar  or  modify 
legitimate  results.  Mankind  have  tried  despotisms,  mon- 
archies, and  republican  forms  of  government.  They  have 
tried  the  extremes  of  anarchy  and  of  autocracy.  They  have 
tried  Draconian  codes  of  law,  and  for  the  lightest  offenses 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  393 

have  extinguished  the  life  of  the  offender.  They  have  estab- 
lished theological  standards,  claiming  for  them  the  sanction 
of  divine  authority,  and  the  attributes  of  a  perfect  and  infal- 
lible law ;  and  then  they  have  imprisoned,  burnt,  massacred, 
not  individuals  only,  but  whole  communities  at  a  time,  for 
not  bowing  down  to  idols  which  ecclesiastical  authority  had 
set  up.  These  and  other  great  systems  of  measures  have 
been  adopted  as  barriers  against  error  and  guilt:  they  have 
been  extended  over  empires,  prolonged  through  centuries, 
and  administered  with  terrible  energy;  and  yet  the  great 
ocean  of  vice  and  crime  overleaps  every  embankment,  pours 
down  upon  our  heads,  saps  the  foundations  under  our  feet, 
and  sweeps  away  the  securities  of  social  order,  of  property, 
liberty,  and  life.  .  .  . 

But  to  all  doubters,  disbelievers,  or  despairers  in  human 
progress,  it  may  still  be  said,  there  is  one  experiment  which 
has  never  yet  been  tried.  It  is  an  experiment  which,  even 
before  its  inception,  offers  the  highest  authority  for  its  ulti- 
mate success.  Its  formula  is  intelligible  to  all;  and  it  is  as 
legible  as  though  written  in  starry  letters  on  an  azure  sky. 
It  is  expressed  in  these  few  and  simple  words :  "  Train  up 
a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go ;  and  when  he  is  old,  he  will 
not  depart  from  it."  This  declaration  is  positive.  If  the 
conditions  are  complied  with,  it  makes  no  provision  for  a 
failure.  Though  pertaining  to  morals,  yet,  if  the  terms  of 
the  direction  are  observed,  there  is  no  more  reason  to  doubt 
the  result  than  there  would  be  in  an  optical  or  a  chemical 
experiment. 

But  this  experiment  has  never  yet  been  tried.  Education 
has  never  yet  been  brought  to  bear  with  one-hundredth  part 
of  its  potential  force  upon  the  natures  of  children,  and 
through  them  upon  the  character  of  men  and  of  the  race. 
In  all  the  attempts  to  reform  mankind  which  have  hitherto 
been  made,  whether  by  changing  the  frame  of  government, 


394  HORACE  MANN 

by  aggravating  or  softening  the  severity  of  the  penal  code, 
or  by  substituting  a  government  —  created  for  a  God-created 
religion  —  in  all  these  attempts,  the  infantile  and  youthful 
mind,  its  amenability  to  influences,  and  the  enduring  and 
self -operating  character  of  the  influences  it  receives,  have 
been  almost  wholly  unrecognized.  Here,  then,  is  a  new 
agency,  whose  powers  are  but  just  beginning  to  be  under- 
stood, and  whose  mighty  energies  hitherto  have  been  but 
feebly  invoked;  and  yet,  from  our  experience,  limited  and 
imperfect  as  it  is,  we  do  know  that,  far  beyond  any  other 
earthly  instrumentality,  it  is  comprehensive  and  de- 
cisive. 

Is  any  high-minded,  exemplary,  and  conscientious  man 
disposed  to  believe  that  this  substantial  extirpation  of  social 
vices  and  crimes  is  a  Utopian  idea,  is  more  than  we  have 
any  reason  to  expect  while  human  nature  remains  as  it  is, 
let  me  use  the  ad  hominem  argument  to  refute  him.  Let  me 
refer  him  to  himself,  and  ask  him  why  the  same  influences 
which  have  saved  him  from  gaming,  intemperance,  dissolute- 
ness, falsehood,  dishonesty,  violence,  and  their  kindred  of- 
fenses, and  have  made  him  a  man  of  sobriety,  frugality,  and 
probity,  why  the  same  influences  which  have  saved  him  from 
ruin,  might  not,  if  brought  to  bear  upon  others,  save  them 
also.  So  far  as  human  instrumentalities  are  concerned,  we 
have  abundant  means  for  surrounding  every  child  in  the 
state  with  preservative  and  moral  influences  as  extensive 
and  as  efficient  as  those  under  which  the  present  industrious, 
worthy,  and  virtuous  members  of  the  community  were 
reared.  And  as  to  all  those  things  in  regard  to  which  we  are 
directly  dependent  upon  the  divine  favor,  have  we  not  the 
promise,  explicit  and  unconditional,  that  the  men  shall  not 
depart  from  the  way  in  which  they  should  go,  if  the  chil- 
dren are  trained  up  in  it?  It  has  been  overlooked  that  this 
promise  is  not  restricted  to  parents,  but  seems  to  be  ad- 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  395 

dressed  indiscriminately  to  all,  whether  parents,  communi- 
ties, states,  or  mankind. 

Religious  Education. 

But  it  will  be  said  that  this  grand  result  in  practical 
morals  is  a  consummation  of  blessedness  that  can  never  be 
attained  without  religion,  and  that  no  community  will  ever 
be  religious  without  a  religious  education.  Both  these  propo- 
sitions I  regard  as  eternal  and  immutable  truths.  Devoid 
of  religious  principles  and  religious  affections,  the  race  can 
never  fall  so  low  but  that  it  may  sink  still  lower ;  animated 
and  sanctified  by  them,  it  can  never  rise  so  high  but  that  it 
may  ascend  still  higher.  And  is  it  not  at  least  as  presump- 
tuous to  'expect  that  mankind  will  attain  to  the  knowledge 
of  truth,  without  being  instructed  in  truth,  and  without  that 
general  expansion  and  development  of  faculty  which  will 
enable  them  to  recognize  and  comprehend  truth  in  any  other 
department  of  human  interest  as  in  the  department  of  re- 
ligion? No  creature  of  God  of  whom  we  have  any  knowl- 
edge has  such  a  range  of  moral  oscillation  as  a  human  being. 
He  may  despise  privileges,  and  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  warnings 
and  instructions  such  as  evil  spirits  may  never  have  known, 
and  therefore  be  more  guilty  than  they;  or,  ascending 
through  temptation  and  conflict  along  the  radiant  pathway  of 
duty,  he  may  reach  the  sublimest  heights  of  happiness,  and 
may  there  experience  the  joys  of  a  contrast  such  as  ever- 
perfect  beings  can  never  feel.  And  can  it  be  that  our  na- 
ture in  this  respect  is  taken  out  of  the  law  that  governs  it  in 
every  other  respect, —  the  law,  namely,  that  the  teachings 
which  supply  it  with  new  views,  and  the  training  that  leads 
it  to  act  in  conformity  with  those  views,  are  ineffective  and 
nugatory  ? 

Indeed,  the  whole  frame  and  constitution  of  the  human 


396  HORACE  MANN 

soul  show  that,  if  man  be  not  a  religious  being,  he  is  among 
the  most  deformed  and  monstrous  of  all  possible  existences. 
His  propensities  and  passions  need  the  fear  of  God  as  a  re- 
straint from  evil ;  and  his  sentiments  and  affections  need  the 
love  of  God  as  a  condition  and  preliminary  to  every  thing 
worthy  of  the  name  of  happiness.  Without  a  capability  or 
susceptibility,  therefore,  of  knowing  and  reverencing  his 
Maker  and  Preserver,  his  whole  nature  is  a  contradiction  and 
a  solecism :  it  is  a  moral  absurdity,  as  strictly  so  as  a  triangle 
with  but  two  sides,  or  a  circle  without  a  circumference,  is  a 
mathematical  absurdity.  The  man,  indeed,  of  whatever  de- 
nomination or  kindred  or  tongue  he  may  be,  who  believes 
that  the  human  race,  or  any  nation,  or  any  individual  in  it, 
can  attain  to  happiness,  or  avoid  misery,  without  religious 
principle  and  religious  affections,  must  be  ignorant  of  the 
capacities  of  the  human  soul,  and  of  the  highest  attributes  in 
the  nature  of  man. 

There  is  not  a  faculty  nor  a  susceptibility  in  the  nature  of 
man,  from  the  lightning-like  intuitions  that  make  him  akin 
to  the  cherubim,  or  the  fire  and  fervor  of  affection  that  as- 
similate him  to  seraphic  beings,  down  to  the  lowest  appe- 
tites and  desires  by  which  he  holds  brotherhood  with  beast 
and  reptile  and  worm  —  there  is  not  one  of  them  all  that 
will  ever  be  governed  by  its  proper  law,  or  enjoy  a  full 
measure  of  the  gratification  it  was  adapted  to  feel,  without 
a  knowledge  of  the  true  God,  without  a  sense  of  acting  in 
harmony  with  his  will  and  without  spontaneous  effusions  of 
gratitude  for  his  goodness.  Convictions  and  sentiments  such 
as  these  can  alone  supply  the  vacuity  in  the  soul  of  man, 
and  fill  with  significance  and  loveliness  what  would  otherwise 
be  a  blank  and  hollow  universe. 

Among  the  infinite  errors  and  enormities  resulting  from 
systems  of  religion  devised  by  man,  and  enforced  by  the  ter- 
rors of  human  government,  have  been  those  dreadful  reac- 


SELECTION  FROM  HORACE  MANN  397 

tions  which  have  abjured  all  religion,  spurned  its  obliga- 
tions, and  voted  the  Deity  into  non-existence.  This  extreme 
is,  if  possible,  more  fatal  than  that  by  which  it  was  pro- 
duced. Between  these  extremes,  philanthropic  and  godly 
men  have  sought  to  find  a  medium,  which  should  avoid  both 
the  evils  of  ecclesiastical  tyranny  and  the  greater  evils  of 
atheism.  And  this  medium  has  at  length  been  supposed  to 
be  found.  It  is  promulgated  in  the  great  principle  that  gov- 
ernment should  do  all  that  it  can  to  facilitate  the  acquisition 
of  religious  truth,  but  shall  leave  the  decision  of  the  question, 
what  religious  truth  is,  to  the  arbitrament,  without  human 
appeal,  of  each  man's  reason  and  conscience ;  in  other  words, 
that  government  shall  never,  by  the  infliction  of  pains  and 
penalties,  or  by  the  privation  of  rights  or  immunities,  call 
such  decision  either  into  pre- judgment  or  into  review.  The 
formula  in  which  the  constitution  of  Massachusetts  ex- 
presses it  is  in  these  words :  "  All  religious  sects  and  de- 
nominations demeaning  themselves  peaceably  and  as  good 
citizens  shall  be  equally  under  the  protection  of  law ;  and  no 
subordination  of  one  sect  or  denomination  to  another  shall 
ever  be  established  by  law."  .  .  . 

Beyond  our  western  frontier,  another  and  a  wider  realm 
spreads  out,  as  yet  unorganized  into  governments,  and  un- 
inhabited by  civilized  man.  The  western  is  still  broader  than 
the  eastern  expanse.  It  stretches  through  thirty  degrees  of 
longitude, —  one-twelfth  part  of  the  circumference  of  the 
globe.  Half  the  population  of  Continental  Europe  might  be 
transplanted  to  it,  find  subsistence  on  it,  and  leave  room  to 
spare.  It  is  now  a  waste  more  dreary  than  desolation  itself ; 
for  it  is  filled  only  with  savage  life.  Yet  soon  will  every 
rood  of  its  surface  be  explored  by  the  centrifugal  force  of  the 
Saxon  soul ;  and  whatever  of  vegetable  wealth  is  spread 
upon  it,  or  of  mineral  wealth  is  garnered  beneath  it,  will  be 
appropriated  by  the  vehemence  of  Saxon  enterprise.  Shall 


398  HORACE  MANN 

this  new  empire,  wider  than  that  of  the  Ptolemies,  and  al- 
most as  extensive  as  that  of  the  Caesars,  be  reclaimed  to  hu- 
manity, to  a  Christian  life,  and  a  Christian  history?  or  shall 
it  be  a  receptacle  where  the  avarice,  the  profligacy,  and  the 
licentiousness  of  a  corrupt  civilization  shall  cast  its  crim- 
inals and  breed  its  monsters?  If  it  is  ever  to  be  saved  from 
such  a  perdition,  the  mother  states  of  this  Union,  those  states 
where  the  institutions  of  learning  and  religion  are  now  hon- 
ored and  cherished,  must  send  out  their  hallowing  in- 
fluences to  redeem  it.  And  if,  in  the  benignant  providence 
of  God,  the  tree  of  Paradise  is  ever  to  be  planted  and  to 
flourish  in  this  new  realm ;  if  its  branches  are  to  spread,  and 
its  leaves  to  be  scattered  for  the  healing  of  the  people  —  will 
not  the  heart  of  every  true  son  of  Massachusetts  palpitate 
with  desire  —  not  a  low  and  vainglorious  ambition,  but 
such  a  high  and  holy  aspiration  as  angels  might  feel  —  that 
her  name  may  be  engraved  upon  its  youthful  trunk,  there  to 
deepen  and  expand  with  its  immortal  growth? 


XXVI.    HERBERT  SPENCER. 
BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 

Herbert  Spencer,  one  of  the  greatest  philosophers  of  all 
time,  was  born  in  Derby,  England,  April  27,  1820.  In  early 
life  he  was  a  civil  engineer,  and  later  interested  himself  in 
economics.  He  devoted  the  later  years  of  his  life  to  work- 
ing out  a  comprehensive  system  of  philosophy  based  on  the 
theory  of  evolution.  Among  his  best  known  philosophical 
works,  which  have  been  widely  read  in  this  country,  are 
the  "  Data  of  Ethics,"  and  "  First  Principles  of  Psychol- 
ogy." He  died  December  8,  1903,  "  the  last  of  the  great 
thinkers  of  the  Victorian  age." 

In  1860  he  published  a  volume  entitled  "  Education :  In- 
tellectual, Moral,  and  Physical  " —  a  work  of  rare  pedagog- 
ical insight  and  argumentative  power.  It  is  thoroughly  utili- 
tarian in  spirit  and  contains  the  most  forcible  arraignment 
to  which  the  older  education  was  ever  subjected.  It  is  note- 
worthy that  the  changes  made  in  the  last  twenty-five  years 
in  our  courses  of  study  have  been  chiefly  in  the  line  pointed 
out  by  Spencer. 

The  following  extract  is,  with  a  few  unimportant  omis- 
sions, the  first  chapter  of  Spencer's  "  Education."  His  dis- 
cussion of  the  question  "  What  Knowledge  is  of  Most 
Worth  ?  "  is  the  most  original  part  of  the  work  and  lays  the 
foundation  of  his  system.  It  is  a  powerful  presentation  of 
the  claims  of  science,  and  in  its  uncompromising  criticism  of 
the  current  education,  and  in  its  confident  advocacy  of  scien- 
tific studies  it  gives  Spencer  a  high  place  among  educational 
reformers. 

399 


400  HERBERT  SPENCER 

SELECTION    FROM    HERBERT    SPENCER. 

WHAT  KNOWLEDGE  IS  OF  MOST   WORTH? 

It  has  been  truly  remarked  that,  in  order  of  time,  decora- 
tion precedes  dress.  Among  people  who  submit  to  great 
physical  suffering  that  they  may  have  themselves  hand- 
somely tattooed,  extremes  of  temperature  are  borne  with  but 
little  attempt  at  mitigation.  Humboldt  tells  us  that  an  Ori- 
noco Indian,  though  quite  regardless  of  bodily  comfort,  will 
yet  labor  for  a  fortnight  to  purchase  pigment  wherewith  to 
make  himself  admired ;  and  that  the  same  woman  who  would 
not  hesitate  to  leave  her  hut  without  a  fragment  of  clothing 
on,  would  not  dare  to  commit  such  a  breach  of  decorum  as  to 
go  out  unpainted.  Voyagers  uniformly  find  that  colored 
beads  and  trinkets  are  much  more  prized  by  wild  tribes  than 
are  calicoes  or  broadcloths.  And  the  anecdotes  we  have  of 
the  ways  in  which,  when  shirts  and  coats  are  given,  they 
turn  them  to  some  ludicrous  display,  show  how  completely 
the  idea  of  ornament  predominates  over  that  of  use.  Nay, 
there  are  still  more  extreme  illustrations :  witness  the  fact 
narrated  by  Captain  Speke  of  his  African  attendants,  who 
strutted  about  in  their  goat-skin  mantles  when  the  weather 
was  fine,  but  when  it  was  wet,  took  them  off,  folded  them  up, 
and  went  about  naked,  shivering  in  the  rain !  Indeed,  the 
facts  of  aboriginal  life  seem  to  indicate  that  dress  is  devel- 
oped out  of  decorations.  And  when  we  remember  that  even 
among  ourselves  most  think  more  about  the  fineness  of  the 
fabric  than  its  warmth,  and  more  about  the  cut  than  the  con- 
venience—  when  we  see  that  the  function  is  still  in  great 
measure  subordinated  to  the  appearance  —  we  have  further 
reason  for  inferring  such  an  origin. 

It  is  not  a  little  curious  that  the  like  relations  hold  with 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  401 

the  mind.  Among  mental  as  among  bodily  acquisitions,  the 
ornamental  comes  before  the  useful.  Not  only  in  times  past, 
but  almost  as  much  in  our  own  era,  that  knowledge  which 
conduces  to  personal  well-being  has  been  postponed  to  that 
which  brings  applause.  In  the  Greek  schools,  music,  poetry, 
rhetoric,  and  a  philosophy  which,  until  Socrates  taught,  had 
but  little  bearing  upon  action,  were  the  dominant  subjects; 
while  knowledge  aiding  the  arts  of  life  had  a  very  subor- 
dinate place.  And  in  our  own  universities  and  schools  at 
the  present  moment  the  like  antithesis  holds.  We  are  guilty 
of  something  like  a  platitude  when  we  say  that  throughout 
his  after-career  a  boy,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  applies  his 
Latin  and  Greek  to  no  practical  purposes.  The  remark  is 
trite  that  in  his  shop,  or  his  office,  in  managing  his  estate  or 
his  family,  in  playing  his  part  as  director  of  a  bank  or  a  rail- 
way, he  is  very  little  aided  by  this  knowledge  he  took  so 
many  years  to  acquire  —  so  little,  that  generally  the  greater 
part  of  it  drops  out  of  his  memory ;  and  if  he  occasionally 
vents  a  Latin  quotation  or  alludes  to  some  Greek  myth,  it  is 
less  to  throw  light  on  the  topic  in  hand  than  for  the  sake  of 
effect.  If  we  inquire  what  is  the  real  motive  for  giving  boys 
a  classical  education,  we  find  it  to  be  simply  conformity  to 
public  opinion.  Men  dress  their  children's  minds  as  they 
do  their  bodies,  in  the  prevailing  fashion.  As  the  Orinoco 
Indian  puts  on  his  paint  before  leaving  his  hut,  not  with  a 
view  to  any  direct  benefit,  but  because  he  would  be  ashamed 
to  be  seen  without  it ;  so  a  boy's  drilling  in  Latin  and  Greek 
is  insisted  on,  not  because  of  their  intrinsic  value,  but  that 
he  may  not  be  disgraced  by  being  found  ignorant  of  them  — 
that  he  may  have  "  the  education  of  a  gentleman  "-  —  the 
badge  marking  a  certain  social  position,  and  bringing  a  con- 
sequent respect. 

This  parallel  is  still  more  clearly  displayed  in  the  case  of 
the  other  sex.     In  the  treatment  of  both  mind  and  body,  the 

PAINTER   PED.    Ess. —  26 


402  HERBERT  SPENCER 

decorative  element  has  continued  to  predominate  in  a  greater 
degree  among  women  than  among  men.  Originally  per- 
sonal adornment  occupied  the  attention  of  both  sexes  equally. 
In  these  latter  days  of  civilization,  however,  we  see  that  in 
the  dress  of  men  the  regard  for  appearance  has,*  in  a  consid- 
erable degree,  yielded  to  the  regard  for  comfort;  while  in 
their  education  the  useful  has  of  late  been  trenching  on  the 
ornamental.  In  neither  direction  has  this  change  gone  so 
far  with  women.  The  wearing  of  ear-rings,  finger-rings, 
bracelets ;  the  elaborate  dressings  of  the  hair ;  the  still  occa- 
sional use  of  paint;  the  immense  labor  bestowed  in  making 
habiliments  sufficiently  attractive;  and  the  great  discomfort 
that  will  be  submitted  to  for  the  sake  of  conformity,  show 
how  greatly,  in  the  attiring  of  women,  the  desire  of  approba- 
tion overrides  the  desire  for  warmth  and  convenience.  And 
similarly  in  their  education,  the  immense  preponderance  of 
"  accomplishments  "  proves  how  here,  too,  use  is  subordi- 
nated to  display.  Dancing,  deportment,  the  piano,  singing, 
drawing  —  what  a  large  space  do  these  occupy  !  If  you  ask 
why  Italian  and  German  are  learned,  you  will  find  that, 
under  all  the  sham  reasons  given,  the  real  reason  is,  that  a 
knowledge  of  those  tongues  is  thought  ladylike.  It  is  not 
that  the  books  written  in  them  may  be  utilized,  which  they 
scarcely  ever  are ;  but  that  Italian  and  German  songs  may  be 
sung,  and  that  the  extent  of  attainment  may  bring  whispered 
admiration.  The  births,  deaths,  and  marriages  of  kings, 
and  other  like  historic  trivialities,  are  committed  to  memory, 
not  because  of  any  direct  benefits  that  can  possibly  result 
from  knowing  them,  but  because  society  considers  them 
parts  of  a  good  education  —  because  the  absence  of  such 
knowledge  may  bring  the  contempt  of  others.  When  we 
have  named  reading,  writing,  spelling,  grammar,  arithmetic, 
and  sewing,  we  have  named  about  all  the  things  a  girl  is 
taught  with  a  view  to  their  direct  uses  in  life;  and  even 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  403 

some  of  these  have  more  reference  to  the  good  opinion  of 
others  than  to  immediate  personal  welfare. 

Thoroughly  to  realize  the  truth  that  with  the  mind  as  with 
the  body  the  ornamentalprecedes  the  useful,  it  is  needful  to 
glance  at  its  rationale.  (This  lies  in  the  fact  that,  from  the 
far  past  down  even  to  the  present,  social  needs  have  subor- 
dinated individual  needs,  and  that  the  chief  social  need  has 
been  the  control  of  individuals.  J  It  is  not,  as  we  commonly 
suppose,  that  there  are  no  governments  but  those  of  mon- 
archs,  and  parliaments,  and  constituted  authorities.  These 
acknowledged  governments  are  supplemented  by  other  un- 
acknowledged ones,  that  grow  up  in  all  circles,  in  which 
every  man  or  woman  strives  to  be  king  or  queen  or  lesser 
dignitary.  To  get  above  some  and  be  reverenced  by  them, 
and  to  propitiate  those  who  are  above  us,  is  the  universal 
struggle  in  which  the  chief  energies  of  life  are  expended. 
By  the  accumulation  of  wealth,  by  style  of  living,  by  beauty 
of  dress,  by  display  of  knowledge  or  intellect,  each  tries  to 
subjugate  others,  and  so  aids  in  weaving  that  ramified  net- 
work of  restraints  by  which  society  is  kept  in  order.  It  is 
not  the  savage  chief  only  who,  in  formidable  warpaint,  with 
scalps  at  his  belt,  aims  to  strike  awe  into  his  inferiors ;  it  is 
not  only  the  belle  who,  by  elaborate  toilet,  polished  manners, 
and  numerous  accomplishments,  strives  to  "  make  con- 
quests," but  the  scholar,  the  historian,  the  philosopher,  use 
their  acquirements  to  the  same  end.  We  are  none  of  us  con- 
tent with  quietly  unfolding  our  own  individualities  to  the 
full  in  all  directions,  but  have  a  restless  craving  to  impress 
our  individualities  upon  others,  and  in  some  way  subordinate 
them.  L  And  this  it  is  which  determines  the  character  of  our 
education.  Not  what  knowledge  is  of  most  real  worth  is  the 
consideration,  but  what  will  bring  most  applause,  honor,  re- 
spect —  what  will  most  conduce  to  social  position  and  influ- 
ence —  what  will  be  most  imposing.  As  throughout  life  not 


404  HERBERT  SPENCER 

what  we  are,  but  what  we  shall  be  thought,  is  the  question ; 
so  in  education,  the  question  is,  not  the  intrinsic  value  of 
knowledge,  so  much  as  its  extrinsic  effects  on  others./  And 
this  being  one  dominant  idea,  direct  utility  is  scarcely  more 
regarded  than  by  the  barbarian  when  filing  his  teeth  and 
staining  his  nails. 

If  there  needs  any  further  evidence  of  the  rude,  undevel- 
oped character  of  our  education,  we  have  it  in  the  fact  that 
the  comparative  worths  of  different  kinds  of  knowledge  have 
been  as  yet  scarcely  even  discussed  —  much  less  discussed  in 
a  methodic  way  with  definite  results.  Not  only  is  it  that 
no  standard  of  relative  values  has  yet  been  agreed  upon,  but 
the  existence  of  any  such  standard  has  not  been  conceived 
in  any  clear  manner.  And  not  only  is  it  that  the  existence  of 
any  such  standard  has  not  been  clearly  conceived,  but  the 
need  for  it  seems  to  have  been  scarcely  even  felt.  Men  read 
books  on  this  topic,  and  attend  lectures  on  that ;  decide  that 
their  children  shall  be  instructed  in  these  branches  of  knowl- 
edge, and  shall  not  be  instructed  in  those ;  and  all  under  the 
guidance  of  mere  custom,  or  liking,  or  prejudice,  without 
ever  considering  the  enormous  importance  of  determining 
in  some  rational  way  what  things  are  really  most  worth 
learning.  It  is  true  that  in  all  circles  we  have  occasional 
remarks  on  the  importance  of  this  or  the  other  order  of  infor- 
mation. But  whether  the  degree  of  its  importance  justifies 
the  expenditure  of  the  time  needed  to  acquire  it,  and  whether 
there  are  not  things  of  more  importance  to  which  the  time 
might  be  better  devoted,  are  queries  which,  if  raised  at  all, 
are  disposed  of  quite  summarily,  according  to  personal  predi- 
lections. It  is  true,  also,  that  from  time  to  time  we  hear 
revived  the  standing  controversy  respecting  the  comparative 
merits  of  classics  and  mathematics.  Not  only,  however,  is 
this  controversy  carried  on  in  an  empirical  manner,  with  no 
reference  to  an  ascertained  criterion,  but  the  question  at  issue 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  405 

is  totally  insignificant  when  compared  with  the  general  ques- 
tion of  which  it  is  part.  To  suppose  that  deciding  whether  a 
mathematical  or  a  classical  education  is  the  best,  is  deciding 
what  is  the  proper  curriculum,  is  much  the  same  thing  as  to 
suppose  that  the  whole  of  dietetics  lies  in  determining 
whether  or  not  bread  is  more  nutritive  than  potatoes. 

The  question  which  we  contend  is  of  such  transcendent 
moment,  is,  not  whether  such  or  such  knowledge  is  of  worth, 
but  what  is  its  relative  worth  ?  When  they  have  named  cer- 
tain advantages  which  a  given  course  of  study  has  secured 
them,  persons  are  apt  to  assume  that  they  have  justified 
themselves;  quite  forgetting  that  the  adequateness  of  the 
advantages  is  the  point  to  be  judged.  There  is,  perhaps, 
not  a  subject  to  which  men  devote  attention  that  has  not 
some  value.  A  year  diligently  spent  in  getting  up  heraldry 
would  very  possibly  give  a  little  further  insight  into  ancient 
manners  and  morals,  and  into  the  origin  of  names.  Any 
one  who  should  learn  the  distances  between  all  the  towns  in 
England  might,  in  the  course  of  his  life,  find  one  or  two  of 
the  thousand  facts  he  had  acquired  of  some  slight  service 
when  arranging  a  journey.  Gathering  together  all  the  small 
gossip  of  a  county,  profitless  occupation  as  it  would  be, 
might  yet  occasionally  help  to  establish  some  useful  fact  — 
say,  a  good  example  of  hereditary  transmission.  But  in 
these  cases  every  one  would  admit  that  there  was  no  pro- 
portion between  the  required  labor  and  the  probable  ben- 
efit. No  one  would  tolerate  the  proposal  to  devote  some 
years  of  a  boy's  time  to  getting  such  information,  at  the 
cost  of  much  more  valuable  information  which  he  might 
else  have  got. 

And  if  here  the  test  of  relative  value  is  appealed  to  and 
held  conclusive,  then  should  it  be  appealed  to  and  held  con- 
clusive throughout.  Had  we  time  to  master  all  subjects 
we  need  not  be  particular.  To  quote  the  old  song: 


406  HERBERT  SPENCER 

"  Could  a  man  be  secure 
That  his  days  would  endure 
As  of  old,  for  a  thousand  long  years, 
What  things  might  he  know  ! 
What  deeds  might  he  do ! 
And  all  without  hurry  or  care." 

"  But  we  that  have  but  span-long  lives  "  must  ever  bear 
in  mind  our  limited  time  for  acquisition.  And  remembering 
how  narrowly  this  time  is  limited,  not  only  by  the  shortness 
of  life  but  also  still  more  by  the  business  of  life,  we  ought  to 
be  especially  solicitous  to  employ  what  time  we  have  to  the 
greatest  advantage.  Before  devoting  years  to  some  subject 
which  fashion  or  fancy  suggests,  it  is  surely  wise  to  weigh 
with  great  care  the  worth  of  various  alternative  results 
which  the  same  years  might  bring  if  otherwise  applied. 

In  education,  then,  this  is  the  question  of  questions,  which 
it  is  high  time  we  discussed  in  some  methodic  way.  The 
first  in  importance,  though  the  last  to  be  considered,  is  the 
problem  how  to  decide  among  the  conflicting  claims  of  vari- 
ous subjects  on  our  attention.  Before  there  can  be  a  rational 
curriculum,  we  must  settle  which  things  it  most  concerns  us 
to  know ;  or,  to  use  a  word  of  Bacon's,  now  unfortunately 
obsolete,  we  must  determine  the  relative  values  of  knowl- 
edges. 

To  this  end  a  measure  of  value  is  the  first  requisite.  And 
happily,  respecting  the  true  measure  of  value,  as  expressed  in 
general  terms,  there  can  be  no  dispute.  Every  one  in  con- 
tending for  the  worth  of  any  particular  order  of  informa- 
tion, does  so  by  showing  its  bearing  upon  some  part  of  life. 
In  reply  to  the  question,  "  Of  what  use  is  it  ?  "  the  mathema- 
tician, linguist,  naturalist,  or  philosopher  explains  the  way 
in  which  his  learning  beneficially  influences  action  —  saves 
from  evil  or  secures  good  —  conduces  to  happiness.  When 
the  teacher  of  writing  has  pointed  out  how  great  an  aid  writ- 


SELECTION  FROM  HF.RRERT  SPENCER  407 

ing  is  to  success  in  business  —  that  is,  to  the  obtaining  of 
sustenance  —  that  is,  to  satisfactory  living  —  he  is  held  to 
have  proved  his  case.  And  when  the  collector  of  dead  facts 
(say  a  numismatist)  fails  to  make  clear  any  appreciable 
effects  which  these  facts  can  produce  on  human  welfare,  he 
is  obliged  to  admit  that  they  are  comparatively  valueless. 
All  then,  either  directly'  or  by  implication,  appeal  to  this  as 
the  ultimate  test. 

How  to  live  ?  —  that  is  the  essential  question  for  us.  Not 
how  to  live  in  the  mere  material  sense  only,  but  in  the  widest 
sense.  The  general  problem  which  comprehends  every  spe- 
cial problem  is,  the  right  ruling  of  conduct  in  all  directions 
under  all  circumstances.  In  what  way  to  treat  the  body; 
in  what  way  to  treat  the  mind ;  in  what  way  to  manage  our 
affairs ;  in  what  way  to  bring  up  a  family ;  in  what  way  to 
behave  as  a  citizen ;  in  what  way  to  utilize  all  those  sources  of 
happiness  which  nature  supplies  —  how  to  use  our  faculties 
Jo  the  greatest  advantage  of  ourselves  and  others  —  how  to 
live  completely  ?  And  this  being  the  great  thing  needful  for 
us  to  learn,  is,  by  consequence,  the  great  thing  which  edu- 
cation has  to  teach.  To  prepare  us  for  complete  living  is 
the  function  which  education  has  to  discharge ;  and  the  only 
rational  mode  of  judging  of  any  educational  course  is,  to 
judge  in  what  degree  it  discharges  such  function.  ^^  - 

This,  test,  never  used  in  its  entirety,  but  rarely  even  par- 
tially used,  and  used  then  in  a  vague,  half-conscious  way, 
has  to  be  applied  consciously,  methodically,  and  throughout 
all  cases.  It  behooves  us  to  set  before  ourselves,  and  ever 
to  keep  clearly  in  view,  complete  living  as  the  end  to  be 
achieved ;  so  that  in  bringing  up  our  children  we  may 
choose  subjects  and  methods  of  instruction  with  deliberate 
reference  to  this  end.  Not  only  ought  we  to  cease  from  the 
mere  unthinking  adoption  of  the  current  fashion  in  educa- 
tion, which  has  no  better  warrant  than  any  other  fashion, 


408  HERBERT  SPENCER 

but  we  must  also  rise  above  that  rude,  empirical  style  of 
judging  displayed  by  those  more  intelligent  people  who  do 
bestow  some  care  in  overseeing  the  cultivation  of  their  chil- 
dren's minds.  It  must  not  suffice  simply  to  think  that  such 
or  such  information  will  be  useful  in  after  life,  or  that  this 
kind  of  knowledge  is  of  more  practical  value  than  that ;  but 
we  must  seek  out  some  process  of  estimating  their  respective 
values,  so  that  as  far  as  possible  we  may  positively  know 
which  are  most  deserving  of  attention. 

Doubtless  the  task  is  difficult  —  perhaps  never  to  be  more 
than  approximately  achieved.  But  considering  the  vastness 
of  the  interests  at  stake,  its  difficulty  is  no  reason  for  pusil- 
lanimously  passing  it  by,  but  rather  for  devoting  every  en- 
ergy to  its  mastery.  And  if  we  only  proceed  systematically, 
we  may  very  soon  get  at  results  of  no  small  moment. 

Our  first  step  rnu^t  obviously  be  to  classify,  in  the  order 
of  their  importance,  the  leading  kinds  of  activity  which  con- 
stitute human  life.  They  may  naturally  be  arranged  into, 
i.  Those  activities  which  directly  minister  to  self-preserva- 
tion ;  2.  Those  activities  which,  by  securing  the  necessaries 
of  life,  indirectly  minister  to  self-preservation;  3.  Those 
activities  which  have  for  their  end  the  rearing  and  discipline 
of  offspring;  4.  Those  activities  which  are  involved  in  the 
maintenance  of  proper  social  and  political  relations ;  5.  Those 
miscellaneous  activities  which  make  up  the  leisure  -part  of 
life,  devoted  to  the  gratification  of  the  tastes  and  feelings. 

That  these  stand  in  something  like  their  true  order  of 
subordination,  it  needs  no  long  consideration  to  show.  The 
actions  and  precautions  by  which,  from  moment  to  moment, 
we  secure  personal  safety  must  clearly  take  precedence  of  all 
others.  Could  there  be  a  man,  ignorant  as  an  infant  of  all 
surrounding  objects  and  movements,  or  how  to  guide  him- 
self among  them,  he  would  pretty  certainly  lose  his  life  the 
first  time  he  went  into  the  street,  notwithstanding  any 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  409 

amount  of  learning  he  might  have  on  other  matters.  And 
as  entire  ignorance  in  all  other  directions  would  be  less 
promptly  fatal  than  entire  ignorance  in  this  direction,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  knowledge  immediately  conducive  to  self- 
preservation  is  of  primary  importance. 

That  next  after  direct  self-preservation  comes  the  indirect 
self-preservation,  which  consists  in  acquiring  the  means  of 
living,  none  will  question.  That  a  man's  industrial  func- 
tions must  be  considered  before  his  parental  ones  is  manifest 
from  the  fact  that,  speaking  generally,  the  discharge  of  the 
parental  functions  is  made  possible  only  by  the  previous  dis- 
charge of  the  industrial  ones.  The  power  of  self-mainte- 
nance necessarily  preceding  the  power  of  maintaining 
offspring,  it  follows  that  knowledge  needful  for  self-mainte- 
nance has  stronger  claims  than  knowledge  for  family  welfare 
—  is  second  in  value  to  none  save  knowledge  needful  for 
immediate  self-preservation. 

As  the  family  comes  before  the  state  in  order  of  time  —  as 
the  bringing  up  of  children  is  possible  before  the  state  exists, 
or  when  it  has  ceased  to  be,  whereas  the  state  is  rendered 
possible  only  by  the  bringing  up  of  children  —  it  follows 
that  the  duties  of  the  parent  demand  closer  attention  than 
those  of  the  citizen.  Or,  to  use  a  further  argument,  since 
the  goodness  of  a  society  ultimately  depends  on  the  nature 
of  its  citizens,  and  since  the  nature  of  its  citizens  is  more 
modifiable  by  early  training  than  by  anything  else,  we  must 
conclude  that  the  welfare  of  the  family  underlies  the  welfare 
of  society.  And  hence  knowledge  directly  conducing  to  the 
first  must  take  precedence  of  knowledge  directly  conducing 
to  the  last. 

Those  various  forms  of  pleasurable  occupation  which  fill 
up  the  leisure  left  by  graver  occupations  —  the  enjoyments 
of  music,  poetry,  painting,  etc. —  manifestly  imply  a  pre- 
existing society.  Not  only  is  a  considerable  development 


410  HERBERT  SPENCER 

of  them  impossible  without  a  long-established  social  union, 
but  their  very  subject-matter  consists  in  great  part  of  social 
sentiments  and  sympathies.  Not  only  does  society  supply 
the  conditions  to  their  growth,  but  also  the  ideas  and  senti- 
ments they  express.  And  consequently  that  part  of  human 
conduct  which  constitutes  good  citizenship  is  of  more 
moment  than  that  which  goes  out  in  accomplishments  or 
exercise  of  the  tastes ;  and,  in  education,  preparation  for  the 
one  must  rank  before  preparation  for  the  other. 

Such  then,  we  repeat,  is  something  like  the  rational  order 
of  subordination :  That  education  which  prepares  for  direct 
self-preservation ;  that  which  prepares  for  indirect  self-pres- 
ervation ;  that  which  prepares  for  parenthood ;  that  which 
prepares  for  citizenship ;  that  which  prepares  for  the  miscel- 
laneous refinements  of  life.  We  do  not  mean  to  say  that 
these  divisions  are  definitely  separable.  We  do  not  deny 
that  they  are  intricately  entangled  with  each  other  in  such 
way  that  there  can  be  no  training  for  any  that  is  not  in  some 
measure  a  training  for  all.  Nor  do  we  question  that  of  each 
division  there  are  portions  more  important  than  certain  por- 
tions of  the  preceding  divisions :  that,  for  instance,  a  man 
of  much  skill  in  business,  but  little  other  faculty,  may  fall 
farther  below  the  standard  of  complete  living  than  one  of  but 
moderate  power  of  acquiring  money  but  great  judgment  as 
a  parent;  or  that  exhaustive  information  bearing  on  right 
social  acti6n,  joined  with  entire  want  of  general  culture  in 
literature  and  the  fine  arts,  is  less  desirable  than  a  more  mod- 
erate share  of  the  one  joined  with  some  of  the  other.  But 
after  making  all  qualifications,  there  still  remain  these  broad- 
ly-marked divisions :  and  it  still  continues  substantially  true 
that  these  divisions  subordinate  one  another  in  the  fore- 
going order,  because  the  corresponding  divisions  of  life  make 
one  another  possible  in  that  order. 

Of  course  the  ideal  of  education  is  complete  preparation 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  411 

in  all  these  divisions.  But  failing  this  ideal,  as  in  our  phase 
of  civilization  every  one  must  do  more  or  less,  the  aim  should 
be  to  maintain  a  due  proportion  between  the  degrees  of  prep- 
aration in  each.  Not  exhaustive  cultivation  in  any  one,  su- 
premely important  though  it  may  be  —  not  even  an  exclusive 
attention  to  the  two,  three,  or  four  divisions  of  greatest  im- 
portance ;  but  an  attention  to  all  —  greatest  where  the  value 
is  greatest,  less  where  the  value  is  less,  least  where  the  value 
is  least.  For  the  average  man  (not  to  forget  the  cases  in 
which  peculiar  aptitude  for  some  one  department  of  knowl- 
edge rightly  makes  that  one  the  bread-winning  occupation) 
—  for  the  average  man,  we  say,  the  desideratum  is  a  train- 
ing that  approaches  nearest  to  perfection  in  the  things  which 
most  subserve  complete  living,  and  falls  more  and  more 
below  perfection  in  the  things  that  have  more  and  more 
remote  bearings  on  complete  living. 

In  regulating  education  by  this  standard  there  are  some 
general  considerations  that  should  be  ever  present  to  us. 
The  worth  of  any  kind  of  culture,  as  aiding  complete  living, 
may  be  either  necessary  or  more  or  less  contingent.  There 
is  knowledge  of  intrinsic  value,  knowledge  of  quasi-intrin- 
sic value,  and  knowledge  of  conventional  value.  Such  facts 
as  that  sensations  of  numbness  and  tingling  commonly  pre- 
cede paralysis,  that  the  resistance  of  water  to  a  body  moving 
through  it  varies  as  the  square  of  the  velocity,  that  chlorine 
is  a  disinfectant  —  these,  and  the  truths  of  science  in  gen- 
eral, are  of  intrinsic  value :  they  will  bear  on  human  con- 
duct ten  thousand  years  hence  as  they  do  now.  The  extra 
knowledge  of  our  own  language,  which  is  given  by  an  ac- 
quaintance with  Latin  and  Greek,  may  be  considered  to  have 
a  value  that  is  quasi-intrinsic;  it  must  exist  for  us  and  for 
other  races  whose  languages  owe  much  to  these  sources,  but 
will  last  only  as  long  as  our  languages  last.  While  that  kind 
of  information  which,  in  our  schools,  usurps  the  name  His- 


412  HERBERT  SPENCER 

tory  —  the  mere  tissue  of  names  and  dates  and  dead  un- 
meaning events  —  has  a  conventional  value  only,  it  has  not 
the  remotest  bearing  upon  any  of  our  actions,  and  it  is  of 
use  only  for  the  avoidance  of  those  unpleasant  criticisms 
which  current  opinion  passes  upon  its  absence.  Of  course, 
as  those  facts  which  concern  all  mankind  throughout  all 
time  must  be  held  of  greater  moment  than  those  which  con- 
cern only  a  portion  of  them  during  a  limited  era,  and  of 
far  greater  moment  than  those  which  concern  only  a  portion 
of  them  during  the  continuance  of  a  fashion,  it  follows  that 
in  a  rational  estimate,  knowledge  of  intrinsic  worth  must, 
other  things  equal,  take  precedence  of  knowledge  that  is  of 
quasi-intrinsic  or  conventional  worth. 

One  further  preliminary.  Acquirement  of  every  kind  has 
two  values  —  value  as  knowledge  and  value  as  discipline. 
Besides  its  use  for  guidance  in  conduct,  the  acquisition  of 
each  order  of  facts  has  also  its  use  as  mental  exercise ;  and 
its  effects  as  a  preparative  for  complete  living  have  to  be 
considered  under  both  these  heads. 

These,  then,  are  the  general  ideas  with  which  we  must 
set  out  in  discussing  a  curriculum:  Life  as  divided  into  sev- 
eral kinds  of  activity  of  successively  decreasing  importance ; 
the  worth  of  each  order  of  facts  as  regulating  these  several 
kinds  of  activity,  intrinsically,  quasi-intrinsically,  and  con- 
ventionally; and  their  regulative  influences  estimated  both 

as  knowledge  and  discipline. 

***** 

[In  the  paragraphs  omitted  Spencer  argues  that  physiol- 
ogy should  have  a  place  in  our  courses  of  study  for  its  direct 
relation  to  self-preservation;  that  mathematics,  physics, 
chemistry,  biology  and  social  science  should  be  taught  for 
their  relation  to  indirect  self-preservation ;  that  instruction 
should  be  provided  in  relation  to  parenthood  —  an  impor- 
tant subject  at  present  wholly  neglected;  and  that  more  ade- 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  413 

quate  arrangements  should  be  made  for  instruction  in  the 
duties  of  citizenship.] 

And  now  we  come  to  that  remaining  division  of  human 
life  which  includes  the  relaxations,  pleasures,  and  amuse- 
ments filling  leisure  hours.  After  considering  what  train- 
ing best  fits  for  self-preservation,  for  the  obtaining  of  sus- 
tenance, for  the  discharge  of  parental  duties,  and  for  the 
regulation  of  social  and  political  conduct,  we  have  now  to 
consider  what  training  best  fits  for  the  miscellaneous  ends  not 
included  in  these  —  for  the  enjoyments  of  nature,  of  litera- 
ture, and  of  the  fine  arts,  in  all  their  forms.  Postponing  them 
as  we  do  to  things  that  bear  more  vitally  upon  human  wel- 
fare, and  bringing  everything,  as  we  have,  to  the  list  of  ac- 
tual value,  it  will  perhaps  be  inferred  that  we  are  inclined 
to  slight  these  less  essential  things.  No  greater  mistake 
could  be  made,  however.  We  yield  to  none  in  the  value  we 
attach  to  aesthetic  culture  and  its  pleasures.  Without  paint- 
ing, sculpture,  music,  poetry,  and  the  emotions  produced  by 
natural  beauty  of  every  kind,  life  would  lose  half  its  charm. 
So  far  from  thinking  that  the  training  and  gratification  of 
the  tastes  are  unimportant,  we  believe  that  the  time  will 
come  when  they  will  occupy  a  much  larger  share  of  human 
life  than  now.  When  the  forces  of  nature  have  been  fully 
conquered  to  man's  use  —  when  the  means  of  production 
have  been  brought  to  perfection  —  when  labor  has  been 
economized  to  the  highest  degree  —  when  education  has 
been  so  systematized  that  a  preparation  for  the  more  essen- 
tial activities  may  be  made  with  comparative  rapidity  — 
and  when,  consequently,  there  is  a  great  increase  of  spare 
time,  then  will  the  poetry,  both  of  art  and  nature,  rightly  fill 
a  large  space  in  the  minds  of  all. 

But  it  is  one  thing  to  admit  that  aesthetic  culture  is  in  a 
high  degree  conducive  to  human  happiness,  and  another 
thing  to  admit  that  it  is  a  fundamental  requisite  to  human 


414  HERBERT  SPENCER 

happiness.  However  important  it  may  be,  it  must  yield 
precedence  to  those  kinds  of  culture  which  bear  more  di- 
rectly upon  the  duties  of  life.  As  before  hinted,  literature 
and  the  fine  arts  are  made  possible  by  those  activities  which 
make  individual  and  social  life  possible ;  and  manifestly,  that 
which  is  made  possible  must  be  postponed  to  that  which 
makes  it  possible.  A  florist  cultivates  a  plant  for  the  sake 
of  its  flower,  and  regards  the  roots  and  leaves  as  of  value 
chiefly  because  they  are  instrumental  in  producing  the  flower. 
But  while,  as  an  ultimate  product,  the  flower  is  the  thing 
to  which  everything  else  is  subordinate,  the  florist  very  well 
knows  that  the  root  and  leaves  are  intrinsically  of  greater 
importance,  because  on  them  the  evolution  of  the  flower  de- 
pends. He  bestows  every  care  in  rearing  a  healthy  plant,  and 
knows  it  would  be  folly  if,  in  his  anxiety  to  obtain  the  flower, 
he  were  to  neglect  the  plant.  Similarly  in  the  case  before 
us.  Architecture,  sculpture,  painting,  music,  poetry,  etc., 
may  be  truly  called  the  efflorescence  of  civilized  life.  But 
even  supposing  them  to  be  of  such  transcendent  worth  as  to 
subordinate  the  civilized  life  out  of  which  they  grow  (which 
can  hardly  be  asserted),  it  will  still  be  admitted  that  the 
production  of  a  healthy  civilized  life  must  be  the  first  con- 
sideration, and  that  the  .knowledge  conducing  to  this  must 
occupy  the  highest  place. 

And  here  we  see  most  distinctly  the  vice  of  our  educa- 
tional system.  It  neglects  the  plant  for  the  sake  of  the 
flower.  In  anxiety  for  elegance  it  forgets  substance.  While 
it  gives  no  knowledge  conducive  to  self-preservation  — 
while  of  knowledge  that  facilitates  gaining  a  livelihood  it 
gives  but  the  rudiments,  and  leaves  the  greater  part  to 
be  picked  up  anyhow  in  after  life  —  while  for  the  discharge 
of  parental  functions  it  makes  not  the  slightest  provision  — 
and  while  for  the  duties  of  citizenship  it  prepares  by  impart- 
ing a  mass  of  facts,  most  of  which  are  irrelevant,  and  the 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  41$ 

rest  without  a  key,  it  is  diligent  in  teaching  everything  that 
adds  to  refinement,  polish,  eclat.  However  fully  we  may 
admit  that  extensive  acquaintance  with  modern  languages 
is  a  valuable  accomplishment,  which,  through  reading,  con- 
versation, and  travel,  aids  in  giving  a  certain  finish,  it  by  no 
means  follows  that  this  result  is  rightly  purchased  at  the 
cost  of  that  vitally  important  knowledge  sacrificed  to  it. 
Supposing  it  true  that  classical  education  conduces  to  ele- 
gance and  correctness  of  style,  it  can  not  be- said  that  ele- 
gance and  correctness  of  style  are  comparable  in  importance 
to  a  familiarity  with  the  principles  that  should  guide  the 
rearing  of  children.  Grant  that  the  taste  may  be  greatly  im- 
proved by  reading  all  the  poetry  written  in  extinct  languages, 
yet  it  is  not  to  be  inferred  that  such  improvement  of  taste 
is  equivalent  in  value  to  an  acquaintance  with  the  laws  of 
health.  Accomplishments,  the  fine  arts,  belles-lettres,  and 
all  those  things  which,  as  we  say,  constitute  the  efflorescence 
of  civilization,  should  be  wholly  subordinate  to  that  knowl- 
edge and  discipline  in  which  civilization  rests.  As  they  oc- 
cupy the  leisure  part  of  life,  so  should  they  occupy  the  leisure 

part  of  education. 

***** 

Thus  far  our  question  has  been  the  worth  of  knowledge 
of  this  or  that  kind  for  purposes  of  guidance.  We  have 
now  to  judge  the  relative  values  of  different  kinds  of  knowl- 
edge for  purposes  of  discipline.  This  division  of  our  sub- 
ject we  are  obliged  to  treat  with  comparative  brevity;  and 
happily  no  very  lengthened  treatment  of  it  is  needed.  Hav- 
ing found  what  is  best  for  the  one  end,  we  have  by  implica- 
tion found  what  is  best  for  the  other.  We  may  be  quite  sure 
that  the  acquirement  of  those  classes  of  facts  which  are 
most  useful  for  regulating  conduct  involves  a  mental  ex- 
ercise best  fitted  for  strengthening  the  faculties.  It  would 
be  utterly  contrary  to  the  beautiful  economy  of  nature  if  one 


416  HERBERT  SPENCER 

kind  of  culture  were  needed  for  the  gaining  of  information 
and  another  kind  were  needed  as  a  mental  gymnastic. 
Everywhere  throughout  creation  we  find  faculties,  developed 
through  the  performance  of  those  functions  which  it  is  their 
office  to  perform,  not  through  the  performance  of  artificial 
exercises  devised  to  fit  them  for  these  functions.  The  red 
Indian  acquires  the  swiftness  and  agility  which  make  him 
a  successful  hunter  by  the  actual  pursuit  of  animals;  and 
by  the  miscellaneous  activities  of  his  life  he  gains  a  better 
balance  of  physical  powers  than  gymnastics  ever  give.  That 
skill  in  tracking  enemies  and  prey  which  he  has  reached  by 
long  practice  implies  a  subtlety  of  perception  far  exceeding 
anything  produced  by  artificial  training.  And  similarly 
throughout.  From  the  Bushman,  whose  eye,  which  being 
habitually  employed  in  identifying  distant  objects  that  are 
to  be  pursued  or  fled  from,  has  acquired  a  quite  telescopic 
range,  to  the  accountant  whose  daily  practice  enables  him 
to  add  up  several  columns  of  figures  simultaneously,  we  find 
that  the  highest  power  of  a  faculty  results  from  the  dis- 
charge of  those  duties  which  the  conditions  of  life  require 
it  to  discharge.  And  we  may  be  certain,  a  priori,  that  the 
same  law  holds  throughout  education.  The  education  of 
most  value  for  guidance  must  at  the  same  time  be  the  edu- 
cation of  most  value  for  discipline. 

***** 

We  conclude,  then,  that  for  discipline  as  well  as  for  guid- 
ance, science  is  of  chiefest  value.  In  all  its  effects,  learning 
the  meaning  of  things  is  better  than  learning  the  meaning 
of  words.  Whether  for  intellectual,  moral,  or  religious 
training,  the  study  of  surrounding  phenomena  is  immensely 
superior  to  the  study  of  grammars  and  lexicons. 

Thus  to  the  question  with  which  we  set  out,  What  knowl- 
edge is  of  most  worth  ?  the  uniform  reply  is  —  science.  This 
is  the  verdict  on  all  the  counts.  For  direct  self-preservation, 


SELECTION  FROM  HERBERT  SPENCER  417 

or  the  maintenance  of  life  and  health,  the  all-important 
knowledge  is  —  science.  For  that  indirect  self-preserva- 
tion which  we  call  gaining  a  livelihood,  the  knowledge  of 
greatest  value  is  —  science.  For  the  due  discharge  of 
parental  functions,  the  proper  guidance  is  to  be  found  only 
in  —  science.  For  that  interpretation  of  national  life,  past 
and  present,  without  which  the  citizen  can  not  rightly 
regulate  his  conduct,  the  indispensable  key  is  —  science. 
Alike  for  the  most  perfect  production  and  highest  enjoy- 
ment of  art  in  all  its  forms,  the  needful  preparation  is  still 
—  science.  And  for  purposes  of  discipline  —  intellectual, 
moral,  religious  —  the  most  efficient  study  is,  once  more  — 
science.  The  question  which  at  first  seemed  so  perplexed  has 
become,  in  the  course  of  our  inquiry,  comparatively  simple. 
We  have  not  to  estimate  the  degrees  of  importance  of  differ- 
ent orders  of  human  activity,  and  different  studies  as  sever- 
ally fitting  us  for  them,  since  we  find  that  the  study  of 
science,  in  its  most  comprehensive  meaning,  is  the  best  prep- 
aration for  all  these  orders  of  activity.  We  have  not  to  de- 
cide between  the  claims  of  knowledge  of  great  though  con- 
ventional value,  and  knowledge  of  less  though  intrinsic 
value,  seeing  that  the  knowledge  which  we  find  to  be  of  most 
value  in  all  other  respects  is  intrinsically  most  valuable :  its 
worth  is  not  dependent  upon  opinion,  but  is  as  fixed  as  is  the 
relation  of  man  to  the  surrounding  world.  Necessary  and 
eternal  as  are  its  truths,  all  science  concerns  all  mankind  for 
all  time.  Equally  at  present  and  in  the  remotest  future  must 
it  be  of  incalculable  importance  for  the  regulation  of  their 
conduct  that  men  should  understand  the  science  of  life, 
physical,  mental,  and  social,  and  that  they  should  under- 
stand all  other  science  as  a  key  to  the  science  of  life. 

And  yet  the  knowledge  which  is  of  such  transcendent 
value  is  that  which,  in  our  age  of  boasted  education,  re- 
ceives the  least  attention.  While  this  which  we  call  civili- 

PAINTER  FED.  Ess. — 


4i8  HERBERT  SPENCER 

zation  could  never  have  arisen  had  it  not  been  for  science, 
science  forms  scarcely  an  appreciable  element  in  what  men 
consider  civilized  training.  Though  to  the  progress  of  sci- 
ence we  owe  it  that  millions  find  support  where  once  there 
was  food  only  for  thousands,  yet  of  these  millions  but  a 
few  thousands  pay  any  respect  to  that  which  has  made 
their  existence  possible.  Though  this  increasing  knowledge 
of  the  properties  and  relations  of  things  has  not  only  en- 
abled wandering  tribes  to  grow  into  populous  nations,  but 
has  given  to  the  countless  members  of  those  populous  na- 
tions comforts  and  pleasures  which  their  few  naked  ancestors 
never  even  conceived,  or  could  have  believed,  yet  is  this  kind 
of  knowledge  only  now  receiving  a  grudging  recognition 
in  our  highest  educational  institutions.  To  the  slowly  grow- 
ing acquaintance  with  the  uniform  coexistences  and  se- 
quences of  phenomena  —  to  the  establishment  of  invariable 
laws  —  we  owe  our  emancipation  from  the  grossest  super- 
stitions. But  for  science  we  should  be  still  worshipping 
fetishes,  or,  with  hecatombs  of  victims,  propitiating  diaboli- 
cal deities. 

Paraphrasing  an  Eastern  fable,  we  may  say  that  in  the 
family  of  knowledges,  science  is  the  household  drudge,  who, 
in  obscurity,  hides  unrecognized  perfections.  To  her  has 
been  committed  all  the  work ;  by  her  skill,  intelligence,  and 
devotion  have  all  the  conveniences  and  gratifications  been 
obtained ;  and  while  ceaselessly  occupied  ministering  to  the 
rest,  she  has  been  kept  in  the  background,  that  her  haughty 
sisters  might  flaunt  their  fripperies  in  the  eyes  of  the  world. 
The  parallel  holds  yet  further.  For  we  are  fast  coming  to 
the  denouement,  when  the  positions  will  be  changed;  and 
while  these  haughty  sisters  sink  into  merited  neglect, 
science,  proclaimed  as  highest  alike  in  worth  and  beauty, 
will  reign  supreme. 


INDEX 


ACTIVITIES,   the  leading,  of  life,  408. 

Alphabet,  how  to  be  taught,  no; 
how  to  be  learned,  144. 

Alexander,  taught  by  Aristotle,  109, 
219. 

Anger,    to   be    avoided,    138. 

Apostolical  Constitution,  described, 
150;  forbid  pagan  books,  151; 
parents  should  bring  up  children 
religiously,  152;  corporal  punish- 
ment, 152;  catechumens,  153; 
preparation  for  baptism,  154. 

Aristotle,  sketch  of,  33 ;  principal 
books,  34;  virtue  dependent  on  na- 
ture, habit,  and  reason,  35;  char- 
acter of  rulers,  36;  the  soul  di- 
vided into  two  parts,  37;  Spartan 
education,  38;  education  for  pea,ce 
rather  than  for  war,  39;  virtues  of 
a  state,  39;  reason  and  appetite, 
41;  early  training,  41,  42;  Plato 
criticised,  42;  prohibition  of  inde- 
cency, 42,  43;  education  a  civic 
duty,  44;  should  be  public,  44; 
diverse  aims  of,  45 ;  what  should 
be  taught,  45;  branches  of  educa- 
tion, 46;  .  music,  46,  47;  liberal 
and  utilitarian  culture,  48;  athlet- 
ics should  not  be  brutal,  49;  not 
excessive,  50;  music  in  education, 
50—54;  musical  instruments,  56; 
Plato's  views  criticised,  59;  three 
principles  of  education,  60. 

Arithmetic  defined,  164;  its  relation 
to  the  Scriptures,  165. 

Ascham,  Roger,  sketch  of,  228; 
"  The  Schole-master,"  228;  meth- 
od with  Latin,  229;  on  method, 
231;  precocious  children,  232; 
brilliant  men,  232;  on  mathematics, 
233;  persistent  plodders,  234;  bad 

419 


choice   of   university    studeftts,    235; 

supervision    of   youth,   238. 
Associations,    influence    of    evil,    140; 

bad,    to    be    avoided,    277. 
Astronomy,     defined     and     explained, 

167. 
Athletics,    see    Gymnastics. 

BAPTISM,    preparation    for,    154. 

Books,  should  be  collected,  134; 
different  classes  of,  184;  injurious, 
to  be  excluded  from  schools,  191; 
good,  to  be  provided,  192;  exces- 
sive devotion  to,  220;  sources  of 
wisdom  and  piety,  277. 

CATECHUMENS,    instruction    of,    153. 

Censors,    in   Jesuit    schools,    200. 

Charlemagne,  sketch  of,  155;  efforts 
in  behalf  of  education,  155;  "Ca- 
pitulary of  787,"  156;  study  of  let- 
ters in  monasteries,  156;  who 
should  teach,  157. 

Children,  nature  of,  28;  early  train- 
ing of,  41;  protected  from  evil 
influences,  42,  43;  quick  to  learn, 
104;  should  be  accustomed  to  cor- 
rect speech,  105;  to  be  taught 
early,  108,  109;  to  be  cared  for 
by  mothers,  127;  easily  molded, 
127;  fond  of  learning,  180;  pre- 
cocious, 232;  ready  to  learn,  237; 
not  to  be  broken,  282;  dispositions 
to  be  studied,  282;  to  be  reasoned 
with,  283;  seldom  need  whipping, 
284;  desirous  of  instruction,  299; 
easily  impressed,  300;  characters  to 
be  weighed,  306,  307;  authority 
over,  to  be  assumed,  308;  fear  and 
love  to  be  called  forth,  309;  cor- 
rection of,  310;  appeal  to  reason, 


42O 


INDEX 


313;  trained  in  truthfulness,  314; 
in  good  habits,  315;  should  have 
recreation,  317;  trained  in  virtue, 
319;  should  be  loved,  327;  indul- 
gence of,  327;  not  to  be  com- 
manded, 328;  how  to  be  trained, 
329;  the  only  moral  lesson  suited 
to,  330;  should  be  respected,  331; 
memory  of,  332;  not  to  be  taught 
many  things,  334;  taught  to  love 
all  men,  337;  trained  in  morals, 
349;  their  confidence  to  be  won, 
360;  eagerness  to  learn,  361;  not 
to  be  repelled,  377. 

Christianity,  relation  to  education, 
319;  the  Christian  teacher,  320. 

Church,  the,  attitude  of,  to  pagan 
literature,  151. 

Cicero,  sketch  of,  83;  ideal  of  ora- 
tor, 84;  orator  and  poet,  86; 
studies  for  the  orator,  88;  rhetori- 
cal study,  89;  nature  of  eloquence, 
90;  five  parts  of  oratory,  91;  ele- 
ments of  discourse,  92;  writing  as 
aid  to  speaking,  93;  utility  of 
declamation  and  translation,  95; 
the  orator's  knowledge,  96. 

Clergy,   education   of,    159. 

Comenius,  John  Amos,  sketch  of, 
255;  "Gate  of  Tongues  Un- 
locked," 256;  "  Orbis  Pictus,"  257; 
"Great  Didactic,"  257;  end  of 
education,  258;  woman  to  be  edu- 
cated, 258;  classes  of  objects,  259; 
purpose  of  schools,  259;  office  of 
teachers,  260;  nature  observes  a 
suitable  time,  262;  common  errors, 
265;  examples  before  rules,  266; 
premature  instruction,  267;  too 
many  studies,  268;  comprehension 
before  memorizing,  270;  the  gen- 
eral before  the  particular,  272; 
gradual  progress,  273,  274;  educa- 
tion should  be  continuous,  276; 
on  books,  277. 

Compulsory   education,    23. 

Cornelia,    learning  of,    106. 

Culture,   nature   of,    348. 

Cyrus,    character   of,    62. 

DECORATION    precedes    dress,    400. 


Dialectic,   defined    and  explained,   164. 

Discipline,  nature  of,  342;  subduing 
brutality,  348. 

Discipline    and    knowledge,    412. 

Disputations,  how  conducted  in  Jesuit 
schools,  192;  emulation  encour- 
aged, 201. 

Dittes,    quoted    on    Luther,    170. 

Drawing,    to   be  taught,    333. 

EDUCATION,  two  branches  of,  9; 
gymnastics,  n;  of  woman,  23,  24; 
scope  and  periods  of,  28;  order  of, 
41;  a  civic  duty,  44;  should  be 
public,  44;  diverse  aims  of,  45; 
utilitarian,  45;  liberal  arts,  45; 
branches  of,  46;  three  principles 
of,  60;  in  Persia,  62,  67;  a  diffi- 
cult task,  98;  certain  moral  vir- 
tues, 99;  utility,  100;  moral  aims 
of,  101;  should  begin  early,  107, 
108;  in  public  schools,  113;  in- 
ferior ability  helped  by,  126;  im- 
portance of,  130;  universal,  135, 
memory  in,  136;  religious,  144; 
manual,  148;  catechetical,  153; 
Charlemagne's  efforts  for,  155; 
clerical,  159;  the  world  concerned 
in,  173;  shame  of  neglecting,  174; 
relation  to  civic  welfare,  175;  liber- 
al studies  in,  176;  relation  to  civil 
government,  178;  necessity  of,  179; 
united  with  work,  181;  aim  of, 
193;  emulation  in,  201;  purpose  of, 
204;  bookish  learning,  208;  uses 
of  travel  in,  208;  physical,  209; 
right  use  of,  210;  what  the  scholar 
should  know,  214;  age  for,  219; 
nature  of,  222;  should  be  made 
pleasant,  222;  excessive  language 
study  in,  223;  harsh  methods,  231; 
end  of,  242;  Spartan,  criticised, 
251;  traveling  in,  253;  purpose 
aimed  at,  258;  time  for,  2613;  to 
be  continuous,  276;  ideal  of,  280; 
virtue  as  the  end  of,  282;  fourfold 
aim  of,  283;  of  girls,  neglected, 
294;  for  woman,  301;  source  of 
happiness,  305;  object  of,  306; 
definition  of,  306;  fear  and  love 
in,  309;  to  be  made  agreeable,  316; 


INDEX 


421 


relation  of  Christianity  to,  319; 
what  it  gives,  323;  sense,  percep- 
tion in,  326;  authority  in,  334;  re- 
ligious, to  be  deferred,  338;  what 
it  includes,  341;  develops  manhood, 
343;  as  development,  345;  progres- 
sive, 346;  an  art,  346;  adapted  to 
the  idea  of  humanity,  347;  moral 
training  in,  349;  experiments  in, 
349;  private  and  public,  350;  a 
problem  of,  350;  Pestalozzian  prin- 
ciples of,  353;  hurry  to  be  avoided 
in,  354;  study  of  nature  in,  354; 
exercising  faculties  in,  355;  study 
of  words  in,  356;  value  of  work 
in,  358;  domestic,  359;  moral,  362; 
solid  foundation  for,  363 ;  element- 
ary, 364;  complete,  364;  the  senses 
in,  366;  fundamental  elements  in, 
367;  essential  work  of,  368;  de- 
fined, 372;  theory  and  practice  of, 
373;  results  of  good  instruction, 
374;  as  giving  and  taking,  375; 
material  and  spiritual  ends  in,  376; 
uninterrupted,  378;  precept  and 
example  in,  379;  of  the  body,  386; 
of  the  intellect,  388;  and  plu- 
tocracy, 389;  an  equalizer,  390;  a 
source  of  power,  391;  moral  side 
of,  392;  religious,  395;  a  controll- 
ing principle  of,  403;  present  rude 
character  of,  404;  preparation  for 
complete  living,  407;  symmetrical, 
411;  esthetic,  413;  error  of,  414; 
science  in,  416. 

Egypt,   dancing  and  music  in,    15. 

Eloquence,  see  Orator. 

Emulation,  recommended,  145;  in 
Jesuit  schools,  201. 

English,    importance   of,   288. 

Epicurus,   quoted   on   philosophy,   220. 

Example;  influence  of,   142. 

FAMILY,    the,    relation    to    the    state, 

409. 
Fenelon,    sketch    of,    291;    as    tutor, 

292;     "  Education    of    Girls,"    293; 

neglect    of     girls'     education,     294; 

sphere     and     influence     of     woman, 

295;   defects  in  her  education,  296; 

frivolity   and   idleness   of,    297;    her 


reading,  298;  children  fond  of  in- 
struction, 299;  easily  impressed, 
300;  studies  for  woman,  301. 
Froebel,  Frederick,  sketch  of,  369; 
with  Pestalozzi,  370;  fundamental 
thought  of,  370;  tribute  to,  371; 
the  divine  unity,  372;  definition  of 
education,  372,  379;  theory  and 
practice  of  education,  373;  effects 
of  good  education,  374;  education 
as  giving  and  taking,  375;  su- 
premacy of  right,  375;  material  and 
spiritual  ends,  376;  play,  376,  380; 
children  not  to  be  repelled,  378; 
nature  of  schools,  378;  example 
and  precept,  379;  craving  for  tales, 
381;  man  not  bad  by  nature,  381. 

GEOGRAPHY,  starting  points  of,  334. 

Geometry,    defined,    165. 

God,  as  worthy  object  of  endeavor, 
20;  man's  greatest  need,  357;  the 
unity  of  all  things,  372;  a  knowl- 
edge of  necessary,  396. 

Grammar,  the  study  of,  123;  defined, 
162;  relation  to  the  Scriptures,  162. 

Greek,  a  language  for  scholars,  289. 
(See  Languages,  The  ancient.) 

Gymnastics,  two  parts,  n;  should  be 
employed,  49;  should  not  be  ex- 
cessive, 50;  nor  neglected,  134. 

HARRIS,  Dr.  W.  T.,  quoted  on  Froe- 
bel, 370. 

Health,   laws  of,   280. 

History,  proper  study  of,  212;  con- 
ventional value  of,  412. 

Housekeeper,   a   model,   described,  81. 

Humboldt,  referred  to,  400. 

Hunting,   a   preparation    for   war,    65. 

JEROME,  sketch  of,  143;  letter  to 
Laeta,  143;  religious  education, 
144;  learning  the  alphabet,  144; 
writing,  143;  emulation,  143;  teach- 
er to  be  moral  and  learned,  145; 
early  impressions,  146;  dress  and 
ornament,  146;  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, 146;  religious  exercises,  147; 
manual  training,  148;  monastic 
education,  149. 

Jesuits,     the,    sketch    of,     187;     Con- 


422 


INDEX 


Etitutions  of,  187;  Ratio  Studi- 
orum,  1 88;  selection  of  teachers, 
1 88;  study  of  the  Scriptures,  189; 
innovating  opinions  discouraged, 
189;  examinations,  189,  199;  dif- 
ferent schools  or  grades,  190;  life- 
long teachers,  190;  injurious  books 
to  be  excluded,  191;  use  of  Latin 
language,  191;  prizes,  191;  dispu- 
tations, 192,  198;  useful  books, 
192;  the  teacher's  aim,  193;  rules 
for  quoting  authorities,  194;  direc- 
tions for  the  teacher,  195;  the  Vul- 
gate to  be  defended,  195;  Thomas 
Aquinas  to  be  followed,  196; 
rules  for  various  studies,  197;  re- 
ligious study  of  the  sciences,  199; 
appointment  of  censors,  200;  re- 
ligious lectures,  201;  emulation, 
201. 

KANT,  Immanuel,  sketch  of,  340;  his 
"  Pedagogy,"  341 ;  nature  of  edu- 
cation, 341;  office  of  discipline,  342, 
348;  love  of  freedom,  343;  culture, 
343.  348;  theory  of  education,  344; 
development  of  latent  powers,  345; 
education  progressive,  346;  as  an 
art,  346;  a  mistake  of  parents,  347; 
moral  training,  349;  experimental 
schools,  349;  private  and  public  ed- 
ucation, 350;  an  educational  prob- 
lem, 350. 

Knowledge,  relative  worth  of,  405; 
intrinsic  and  conventional  value  of, 
411;  and  discipline,  412. 

LANGUAGES,  the  ancient,  176,  177; 
excessive  study  of,  223;  too  dearly 
bought,  225;  how  learned  by  Mon- 
taigne, 225,  226;  why  studied,  242; 
studied  too  long,  286;  of  no  prac- 
tical utility,  401 ;  quasi-intrinsic 
value  of,  411. 

Latin,   in  Jesuit  schools,    191. 

Liberal  Arts,  45;  not  to  be  pursued 
for  profit,  100;  enumerated,  162. 

Libraries,  to  be  established,  183;  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  books  for,  184. 

Life,  divided  into  two  parts,  37;  its 
nature,  324. 


Locke,  John,  sketch  of,  278; 
"  Thoughts  Concerning  Educa- 
tion," 2y#;  ideal  of  education,  280; 
rules  for  health,  280;  mistakes  of 
parents,  281;  self-control,  281; 
children  not  to  be  broken,  282; 
their  aptitudes  studied,  282;  rea- 
soning with,  283;  whipping  to  be 
avoided,  284;  character  of  teacher, 
284;  four  ends  in  education,  285; 
ancient  languages,  286;  gaining  the 
attention,  287;  pre-eminence  of 
English,  288. 

Luther,  Martin,  sketch  of,  169;  prin- 
cipal educational  writings,  170; 
fundamental  conception  of  educa- 
tion, 170;  Letter  to  Mayors  and 
Aldermen,  171;  decline  of  schools, 
171;  the  devil's  purpose,  172;  im- 
portance of  education,  173;  shame 
of  neglecting,  174;  civic  welfare 
dependent  on  education,  175;  lib- 
eral studies,  176;  the  languages 
and  the  gospel,  177;  schools  re- 
quired for  civil  government,  178; 
necessity  of  education,  179;  chil- 
dren delight  in  learning,  180; 
music,  1 80;  work  and  study,  181; 
appeal  to  city  authorities,  182;  on 
libraries,  183;  defects  of  schools, 
183,  184;  different  classes  of 
books,  184. 

MANN,  Horace,  sketch  of,  383;  sec- 
retary of  Board  of  Education,  384; 
last  Annual  Report,  385;  schools  a 
civilizing  force,  385;  physical  edu- 
cation, 386;  intellectual,  388;  edu- 
cation and  plutocracy,  389; 
education  an  equalizer,  390;  a 
source  of  power,  391;  moral  edu- 
cation, 392;  effect  of  right  train- 
ing, 393;  religious  education,  395. 

Manual  training,  inculcated,  148; 
honest  trades  to  be  learned,  152. 

Marriage,  effects  of,   141. 

Mathematics,    influence    of,    233. 

Maurus,  Rhabanus,  sketch  of,  158; 
principal  works,  159;  education  of 
the  clergy,  159;  character  of  the 
Scriptures,  160;  how  to  be  read, 


INDEX 


423 


161;  liberal  arts,  162;  grammar  de- 
fined, 162;  rhetorjp  defined,  163; 
dialectic  explained,  164;  arith- 
metic, 164;  geometry,  165;  music, 
166;  astronomy,  167. 

Memory,  a  sign  of  ability,  119; 
should  be  cultivated,  136. 

Method,  the  developing,  205;  truth 
to  be  assimilated,  206;  nothing  to 
be  imparted  by  mere  authority,  206; 
teaching  by  rote,  208;  right  meth- 
od of  instruction,  215;  Aristotle's 

,  219;  severe  sweetness  in,  222;  As- 
cham's,  in  Latin,  229;  harsh,  in 
English,  231,  235;  order  of  studies, 
243;  with  languages,  245,  246; 
traveling,  253;  basis  of,  261;  sub- 
jects suited,  to  pupil's  age,  263; 
errors  of,  265;  examples  before 
rules,  266;  premature  instruction, 
267;  too  many  studies,  268;  com- 
prehension should  precede  memo- 
rizing, 270;  the  general  should  pre- 
cede the  particular,  272;  gradual 
progress,  273,  274;  holding  the  at- 
tention, 287;  with  Latin,  287;  suc- 
cession of  studies,  290;  instruction 
to  be  made  pleasant,  300;  studies 
for  women,  301 ;  in  domestic  edu- 
cation, 359. 

Milton,    John,   sketch    of,   240;    school 
in  London,  241;  "Tractate  on  Edu- 
cation," 241;  end  of  learning,   242 
purpose    of     language     study,     242 
too     difficult     tasks     exacted,     243 
professional     pursuits,     244;     school 
arrangements,     245;     method     with 
Latin    and    Greek,    245,    246;    range 
of     studies,     247;     moral     training, 
248;    on   poetry,    250;    physical   cul- 
ture,   251;    travel,    253. 

Mimicry,   an   unfavorable  sign,    120. 

Monasteries,  urged  to  give  instruc- 
tion, 156. 

Montaigne,  sketch  of,  203;  "Es- 
says," 204;  purpose  of  education, 
204;, developing  method,  205;  truth 
to  be  assimilated,  206;  nothing  by 
mere  authority,  206;  bookish  learn- 
ing, 208;  uses  of  travel,  208; 
physical  training,  209;  how  to  use 


learning,  210;  sincerity,  211;  ac- 
quisitive disposition,  212;  study  of 
history,  212;  the  world  a  great 
book,  213;  what  the  scholar  should 
know,  214;  various  studies,  215; 
effects  of  philosophy,  216;  Aris- 
totle's teaching,  219;  book-worm 
study,  220;  times  and  places  of 
study,  220,  221;  best  style  of  ex- 
pression, 224;  learning  Latin  and 
Greek,  225,  226;  at  the  College  of 
Guienne,  227. 

Music,  conformed  to  right  models, 
17;  how  regulated,  19;  for  men 
and  women,  20;  in  education,  46; 
why  taught,  50,  51;  for  social  en- 

•  joyment,  53;  different  kinds,  54; 
should  be  taught  to  children,  54; 
instruments  of,  56;  why  studied, 
58;  nature  and  utility  of,  i66:* 
should  be  taught,  180. 

ORATOR,  Cicero's  ideal  of,  84;  defi- 
nition of,  85;  and  poet,  86; 
studies  of,  88;  five  parts  of  his 
art,  91;  should  write  speeches,  93; 
various  exercises,  94,  95;  compre- 
hensive knowledge,  96;  should 
make  preparation,  131;  his  style, 
132. 

Order,  utility  of,  76—79;  in  the 
household,  79. 

PARENTS,  should  be  educated,  105; 
conduct  of,  141;  should  set  good 
example,  142;  should  be  models, 
147;  should  bring  up  children  in 
religion,  152;  mistakes  of,  281;  in- 
fluence of,  302;  their  obligations, 
325;  an  error  of,  347;  aim  of,  377. 

Paroz,  quoted  on   Fenelon,  293. 

Pedagogues.     See    Teachers. 

Pestalozzi,  John  Henry,  sketch  of, 
351;  at  Stanz,  352,  360;  at  Yver- 
dun,  352;  summary  of  principles, 
353;  avoid  hurry,  354;  study  of 
nature,  354;  development  by  ex- 
ercise, 355;  study  of  words,  356; 
truth  a  source  of  strength,  356; 
man's  need  of  God,  357;  work,  358; 
domestic  education,  359;  winning 


424 


INDEX 


confidence,  360;  eagerness  of  chil- 
dren to  learn,  361;  moral  educa- 
tion, 362;  solid  foundation,  363; 
complete  development,  364;  im- 
pulse of  development,  365;  sense- 
perception,  366;  fundamental  ele- 
ments, 367;  essential  work  of  edu- 
cation, 368. 

Philosophy,  nature  of,  100;  impor- 
tance of,  133;  utility  of,  197;  value 
of,  214;  effects  of,  216;  early  in- 
culcated, 219;  suited  to  all  occa- 
sions, 221. 

Physiology,  to  be  taught,   387. 

Plato,  sketch  of,  7;  principal  works, 
8;  early  training  of  children,  9; 
training  both  hands,  10;  two. 
branches  of  education,  1 1 ;  influ- 
ence of  play,  13;  dancing  in  Egypt, 
15;  music,  17;  poetry,  18;  God  as 
object  of  endeavor,  21;  right  way 
to  live,  22;  gymnasia,  23;  compul- 
sory education,  23;  female  educa- 
tion, 23,  34;  life  of  virtue,  26; 
boys  insubordinate,  28;  scope  and 
periods  of  education,  29;  different 
kinds  of  poets,  31;  teachers,  32. 

Play,  influence  of,  13;  significance 
of,  376;  relation  to  inner  life,  380. 

Plutarch,  sketch  of,  125;  three 
needs  in  development,  126;  in- 
ferior ability  helped  by  training, 
126;  care  of  children,  127;  teach- 
ers of  blameless  life,  128;  phil- 
osophy, 133;  universal  education, 
135;  children  to  be  encouraged, 
135;  memory  to  be  cultivated,  136; 
self-control,  137;  anger  to  be 
avoided,  138;  faults  of  young 
men,  138;  evil  associations,  140; 
conduct  of  parents,  141 ;  marriage, 
141. 

Poets,  should  be  heedful,  18;  dif- 
ferent kinds,  31;  allied  to  orators, 
86;  study  of,  250. 

Punishment,  corporal,  condemned, 
122;  inculcated,  132;  to  be  avoid- 
ed, 284;  use  of  rod  in,  310;  re- 
proof, 311;  should  come  as  a  nat- 
ural result,  330;  bodily  chastise- 
ment, 362. 


Pythagoras,  enigmatical  precepts  of, 
140. 

QUINTILIAN,  sketch  of,  103;  his  "In- 
stitutes," 103;  children  quick  to 
learn,  104;  trained  to  correct 
speech,  105;  parents  should  be  edu- 
cated, 105;  character  of  teachers, 
1 06;  Greek  should  precede  Latin, 
107;  education  should  begin  early, 
108;  should  be  made  pleasant,  109; 
the  alphabet,  no;  learning  to 
write,  no;  reading,  in;  kind  of 
copies,  112;  public  schools,  113; 
evil  influences,  114;  emulation, 
117;  pupil's  disposition  to  be  as- 
certained, 119;  mimicry,  120; 
school  management,'  120;  recrea- 
tion, 121 ;  corporal  punishment, 
122;  study  of  grammar,  123. 

READING,   how   to  be   taught,    in. 

Recreation,   to   be   allowed,    121,    317. 

Refinement,    nature    of,    348. 

Rhetoric,  study  of,  89,  90;  defined, 
i6>3;  its  utility,  163. 

Rollin,  Charles,  sketch  of,  303; 
•  "  Treatise  on  Studies,"  304;  edu- 
cation a  source  of  happiness,  305; 
purpose  of  teaching,  306;  defini- 
tion of  education,  306;  children's 
character  to  be  studied,  307;  au- 
thority in  teaching,  308;  fear  and 
love,  309;  punishment,  310;  re- 
proof, 311;  reasoning  with  chil- 
dren, 313;  truthfulness,  314;  good 
habits,  315;  study  to  be  made 
agreeable,  316;  rest  and  recrea- 
tion, 317;  training  in  virtue,  319; 
Christianity,  319. 

Rousseau,  Jean  Jacques,  sketch  of, 
321;  "Confessions,"  321;  "  fimile," 
322;  two  fundamental  principles, 
323;  what  education  is,  323;  the 
best  educated  man,  324;  mothers 
should  nourish  children,  324;  a 
father's  obligation,  325;  the  teach- 
er, 325,  326;  use  of  the  senses,  32(7; 
love  for  childhood,  327;  indulgence 
of  children,  327;  not  to  be  com- 


INDEX 


425 


manded,  328;  right  training,  329; 
punishment,  330;  injuring  others, 
330;  respect  for  children,  331; 
right  teaching,  331;  words  and 
ideas,  331;  memory,  332;  drawing, 
333;  geography,  334;  nothing  by 
authority,  334;  "  Robinson  Cru- 
soe," 336;  results  of  fimile's  train- 
ing, 336;  rural  surroundings,  337; 
religion,  338;  woman's  education  to 
be  relative  to  man,  339. 
Rulers,  character  of,  36. 

SCHOOLS,  buildings  for,  23;  public 
and  private,  113:  management  of, 
120;  cathedral  and  cloister,  181; 
size  and  arrangement  of,  245;  forg- 
ing-place  of  men,  259;  location  of, 
276;  experimental,  349;  explained, 
378;  as  civilizing  force,  385. 

Science,    value   of,   416. 

Scriptures,  the,  to  be  studied,  147; 
order  of  study,  148;  superior  to  pa- 
gan literature,  -151;  character  of, 
1 60;  require  learning,  161;  rela- 
tion of  grammar  to,  162;  the  Vul- 
gate to  be  defended,  195;  studied  in 
the  original  tongues,  249. 

Self-control,  instance  of,  137;  im- 
portance of,  281. 

Seneca,  sketch  of,  97;  education  diffi- 
cult, 98;  recreation  moderate,  99; 
virtues  to  be  inculcated,  99;  na- 
ture of  philosophy,  too;  morality 
the  end  of  education,  101. 

Sense-perception,   326,   366. 

Socrates,  instance  of  self-control, 
137- 

Sparta,  education  in,  38;  brutalizing, 
49;  defects  of,  251. 

Spencer,  Herbert,  sketch  of,  399;  his 
"  Education,"  399;  what  knowl- 
edge is  of  most  worth,  400;  dec- 
oration and  dress,  400;  ornamen- 
tal studies,  401 ;  feminine  accomp- 
lishments, 402;  determining  prin- 
ciple of  education,  403;  rude  char- 
acter of,  404;  relative  worth  of 
knowledge,  405;  limited  time  of  ac- 
quisition, 406;  measure  of  value, 
406;  education  a  preparation  for 


life,  407;  leading  activities  of  life, 
408;  self-preservation,  409;  sym- 
metrical training,  411;  esthetic  edu- 
cation, 413;  vice  of  current  educa- 
tion, 414;  worth  of  science,  416. 

State,  the,  how  rendered  virtuous,  34; 
what  its  virtues  should  be,  39,  40. 

Studies,  liberal  and  utilitarian,  45, 
48;  not  to  be  pursued  for  money, 
100;  moral  side  of,  101;  Milton's 
list  of,  247;  in  morals,  248;  how 
determine  course  of,  412. 

Style,  in  discourse,  132;  Montaigne 
on,  224. 

TEACHERS,  qualifications  of,  32;  char- 
acter of  Persian,  63;  even-tem- 
pered, 100;  learned,  106;  influence 
of  numbers  on,  119;  blameless, 
128;  desirable  traits  of,  145;  office 
of,  260;  character  of,  284;  Chris- 
tian, .320;  qualifications  of,  325. 

Travel,   in   education,    208. 

Truth,  a  source  of  strength,  356;  su- 
premacy of,  375. 

UNIVERSITIES,    criticised,    243. 

VIRTUE,  on  what  dependent,  35;  po- 
litical virtues,  39,  40;  in  what  it 
consists,  53;  relation  of  music  to, 
S3- 

WOMAN,  to  be  educated  as  man  is, 
23 ;  her  domestic  sphere,  71 ;  dis- 
tinctive virtues  of,  72;  should  be 
educated,  258;  sphere  and  influ- 
ence of,  295;  defects  in  her  educa- 
tion, 296;  idleness  and  frivolity  of, 
297;  what  she  should  study,  301; 
educated  relatively  to  man,  339. 

Words,  without  ideas,  331;  study  of, 
356. 

Work,  value  of,  358. 

Writing,   how  to  be  taught,   no,    144. 

XENOPHON,  sketch  of,  61;  "  Cyropae- 
dia  "  "  Economics,"  61 ;  character 
of  Cyrus,  62;  Persian  education, 
62;  its  methods,  63;  study  of  jus- 


426 


INDEX 


tice,  64;  hunting,  65;  practice  of 
abstinence,  66;  duties  of  husband 
and  wife,  70;  different  duties  of, 
71;  virtues  of  each,  72;  utility  of 
order,  76—79;  household  arrange- 


ment,   79,    80;    model   housekecpi  r, 
81. 

YOUTH,   to   be  guarded   against  temp- 
tation,   139. 


EDUCATION     IN     THE 
UNITED     STATES 

Edited  by  NICHOLAS  MURRAY  BUTLER,   President 
of  Columbia  University,  in  the  City  of  New  York 

$2.50 


THE  frequently   expressed  need   for   a    book  giving    a 
complete  view  of  American  education  in  outline  is  satis- 
factorily met  in  this  volume  entitled  "Education  in  the 
United  States." 

^j  The  volume  consists  of  the  twenty  careful  monographs, 
each  written  by  an  eminent  specialist,  on  various  phases  of 
American  education,  which  were  originally  planned  as  part 
of  the  American  educational  exhibit  at  the  International  Ex- 
positions held  at  Paris  in  1900  and  at  St.  Louis  in  1904. 
^j  The  introduction  by  the  editor  sets  forth  the  underlying 
principles  governing  American  educational  activity  to  the 
present  time.  Among  the  authors  of  the  various  monographs 
are:  Commissioner  Draper  of  the  State  of  New  York,  the 
late  Dr.  William  T.  Harris,  formerly  Commissioner  of  Edu- 
cation of  the  United  States,  Dr.  Elmer  Ellsworth  Brown, 
Dr.  Harris's  successor  in  the  Commissionership,  Professor 
Edward  Delavan  Perry  of  Columbia  University,  Professor 
Andrew  F.  West  of  Princeton  University,  President  M.  Carey 
Thomas  of  Bryn  Mawr  College,  etc. ,  etc. 
^j  The  subjects  of  the  monographs  include  such  important 
topics  as  Educational  Organization  and  Administration,  Train- 
ing of  Teachers,  School  Architecture  and  Hygiene,  Profes- 
sional Education,  Education  of  Defectives,  and  Summer 
Schools  and  University  Extension. 

^|  For  the  benefit  of  teachers,  reading  circles,  and  classes  in 
universities,  colleges  and  normal  schools,  each  monograph 
will  be  published  separately  at  20  cents  and  will  be  furnished 
in  quantities  at  $i  5.00  per  hundred  (net). 


AMERICAN     BOOK     COMPANY 

1207) 


VOCATIONAL    EDUCATION 

By  JOHN  M.   GILLETTE,,  Professor  of  Sociology  in  the 
State  University  of  North  Dakota 

$I.OO 


IN  this  volume  is  presented  for  teachers,  superintendents, 
and  teachers'  reading  circles  an  illuminating  discussion  of 
the  present  general  movement  for  vocational  education. 
By  thie  phrase  is  meant  not  only  industrial  education;  but  all 
the  training  courses  needed  to  meet  the  practical  demands  of 
life. 

^[  The  author  explains  at  some  length  the  principles,  de- 
mands, and  methods  of  vocational  education;  he  states  the 
grounds  upon  which  hopes  of  success  may  reasonably  rest; 
he  indicates  some  actual  results  gained  by  schools  conducted 
on  more  practical  lines;  and  he  points  out  others  which 
would  follow  upon  the  reorganization  of  our  educational  sys- 
tem in  general. 

^[  The  vocationalizing  of  the  schools  has  regard  to  the  con- 
stitution, inclination,  and  ability  of  the  individual,  and  is  in- 
tended to  give  him  suitable  training  for  his  niche  in  life,  to 
show  him  how  he  can  make  the  most  of  himself  and  in  what 
line  he  can  prove  himself  most  productive  to  society.  At 
the  same  time,  this  scheme  of  education  does  not  ignore  the 
informational,  the  cultural,  and  the  disciplinary  aspects — it 
insists  that  the  individual  be  fitted  for  good  citizenship. 
^[  The  introduction  of  vocational  education  into  the  public 
school  system  of  the  United  States,  with  the  curriculum  ad- 
apted to  the  chief  kinds  of  occupation  belonging  to  each  com- 
munity, will  mean  greater  development  and  power  for  the 
country.  From  vocational  education,  introduced  to  meet  the 
differing  community  needs,  will  result  greater  efficiency  and 
better  appreciation  of  the  schools,  increased  attendance  of 
pupils,  greater  compensation  for  teachers,  greater  productive- 
ness, higher  wages,  and  improved  society. 


AMERICAN    BOOK    COMPANY 

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A    SYSTEM    OF    PEDAGOGY 

By  EMERSON  E.  WHITE,  A.M.,  LL.D. 


Elements  of  Pedagogy $1.00 

School  Management  and  Moral  Training I.oo 

Art  of  Teaching I.oo 


BY  the  safe  path  of  experience  and  in  the  light  of  modern 
psychology    the    ELEMENTS    OF    PEDAGOGY 
points  out  the  limitations  of  the  ordinary  systems   of 
school  education  and  shows  how  their  methods  may  be  har- 
monized and  coordinated.      The  fundamental  principles  of 
teaching  are  expounded  in  a  manner  which  is  both  logical 
and  convincing,  and  such  a  variety  and  wealth  of  pedagogical 
principles  are  presented  as  are  seldom  to  be  found  in  a  single 
text-book. 

<f[  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT  discusses  school  govern- 
ment and  moral  training  from  the  standpoint  of  experience, 
observation,  and  study.  Avoiding  dogmatism,  the  author 
carefully  states  the  grounds  of  his  views  and  suggestions,  and 
freely  uses  the  fundamental  facts  of  mental  and  moral  science. 
So  practical  are  the  applications  of  principles,  and  so  apt  are 
the  concrete  illustrations  that  the  book  can  not  fail  to  be  of 
interest  and  profit  to  all  teachers,  whether  experienced  or 
inexperienced. 

^  In  the  ART  OF  TEACHING  the  fundamental  princi- 
ples are  presented  in  a  clear  and  helpful  manner,  and  after- 
wards applied  in  methods  of  teaching  that  are  generic  and 
comprehensive.  Great  pains  has  been  taken  to  show  the 
true  functions  of  special  methods  and  to  point  out  their  limita- 
tions, with  a  view  to  prevent  teachers  from  accepting  them 
as  general  methods  and  making  them  hobbies.  The  book 
throws  a  clear  light,  not 'only  on  fundamental  methods  and 
processes,  but  also  on  oral  illustrations,  book  study,  class 
instruction  and  management,  written  examinations  and  pro- 
motions of  pupils,  and  other  problems  of  great  importance. 

AMERICAN     BOOK     COMPANY 


STANDARDS     IN    EDUCATION 

Including  Industrial  Training 

By  ARTHUR  HENRY  CHAMBERLAIN,  B.S.,  A.M., 
Dean  and  Professor  of  Education,  Throop  Polytechnic 
Institute.  $1.00 


THE  present  widespread  agitation  for  a  more  purposeful 
curriculum  is  fully  recognized  by  this  work  on  practical 
pedagogy.      It  discusses  modern  elementary  education 
in  a  helpful  manner,  setting  forth  its  acknowledged  defects  of 
standard,  and   presenting  suggestions  for    the  introduction  of 
more  industrial  training.      The  book  is  broad  in  the  best  sense, 
and  every  problem  affecting  the  school  and  its  relation  to  the 
outside  world  is  dealt  with  so  simply  and  convincingly  as  to 
be  clear  to  everybody,  whether  teachers  or  parents.      Only 
the  great  issues  of  education  are  considered. 


EDUCATION    THROUGH     MUSIC 

By  CHARLES  HUBERT  FARNSWORTH,  Adjunct  Pro- 
fessor of  Music,  Teachers  College,  Columbia  Univer- 
sity. $1.00 


A  BOOK  for  grade  teachers  which  enables  them  to  teach 
music  in  their  schools  with  the  same  ease  and  success 
as  the  ordinary  branches  of  study.  Yet  it  is  no  less 
valuable  for  the  music  supervisor,  the  principal,  and  the  super- 
intendent, and  it  is  an  excellent  text  for  all  schools  in  which 
special  teachers  of  music  are  trained.  It  is  at  once  a  rule, 
a  guide,  and  an  inspiration,  and  points  out  the  place  of  music 
in  the  general  educational  scheme.  It  lays  out  the  work  step 
by  step  for  each  year  of  the  elementary  school,  and  never 
leaves  the  teacher  in  doubt  on  any  point.  The  methods  of 
presentation  are  applicable  to  any  music  course. 


AMERICAN    BOOK    COMPANY 

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TEACHING  A  DISTRICT 
SCHOOL 

By  JOHN  WIRT  DINSMORE,  A.  M.,  Professor  ofPeda 
gogy   and  Dean  of  the  Normal  Department,  Berea  Col- 
lege, Berea,  Ky. 

$l.OO 


THE  special  mission  of  this  book  is  to  help  the  district 
teacher  in  solving  his  problems  and  discharging  his  duties. 
It  deals  with  every  phase  of  school  work  and  every  diffi- 
"culty  which  confront  the  country  teacher,  and  which  seem  to 
him  so  disheartening  and  even  insurmountable  when  he  has 
not  had  the  advantage   of  a  normal  school   training.      Each 
problem  is  treated  in  a  clear,  practical  manner,  and  discussed 
in  plain,   simple  language.      The  book   will  be  particularly 
valuable  to  young  teachers,   but  it  can  be   read   with  great 
profit  by  those  of  experience. 

^|  From  beginning  to  end  this  volume  will  be  more  than  a 
help  to  the  teacher ;  it  will  be  an  inspiration.  The  advice 
given  here  represents  long  research,  patient  investigation,  and 
wide  experience.  It  takes  into  consideration  the  fact  that  the 
teacher  of  the  district  school  is  obliged  to  teach  many  grades 
and  classes,  to  contend  single-handed  with  innumerable  per- 
plexing conditions,  and  to  put  up  with  extremely  limited 
facilities  ;  and  furthermore,  that  he  is  compelled  to  rely  for 
the  solution  of  these  problems  almost  entirely  on  his  own 
judgment.  No  one  understands  better  than  Professor  Dins- 
more  how  vastly  the  conditions  under  which  the  country 
teacher  labors  differ  from  those  encountered  by  the  city 
teacher.  These  vital  facts,  which  are  almost  wholly  ignored 
in  present  works -on  pedagogy,  are  here  fully  recognized.  The 
suggestions  are  thoroughly  sound,  and  all  the  chapters  will 
well  repay  reading  and  re-reading  many  times.  To  anyone 
who  is  studying  the  problems  of  teaching  and  is  anxious  to 
avoid  many  errors  they  will  prove  of  very  great  assistance. 


AMERICAN     BOOK    COMPANY 

(203) 


BOOKS     FOR    TEACHERS 

By    RURICK    N.    ROARK,    Ph.D.,    President    Eastern 
Kentucky  State  Normal  School,  Richmond,  Kentucky 


Psychology  in  Education      .  $1.00       Method  in  Education 
Economy  in  Education   .     .  $1.00 


ROARK'S  PSYCHOLOGY  IN  EDUCATION  pre- 
sents such  a  clear  exposition  of  the  elementary  princi- 
ples of  psychology  and  then-  practical  applications  in 
methods   of  education  as  to  furnish  a  logical   and   scientific 
basis  for  the  daily  work  in  the  class  room.     Intended  for  the 
average  teacher,  it  gives  a  full  and  logical  outline  by  which 
the  teacher  may  guide  his  study  and  lays  constant  emphasis 
upon  the  necessity  and  the  means  of  carrying  psychology  into 
the  schoolroom. 

y  In  METHOD  IN  EDUCATION  the  author  develops 
in  detail  the  applications  of  psychology  in  the  work  of 
teaching.  He  discusses  the  principles  upon  which  good 
teaching  must  be  based,  and  also  the  means  of  making  the 
subjects  in  the  curriculum  produce  the  best  educational  results. 
Each  branch  of  study  usually  taught  in  elementary  schools  is 
taken  up  and  considered  separately,  and  much  hopeful  advice 
is  given,  supplemented  by  suggestive  outlines,  lesson  plans, 
and  topics. 

^[  ECONOMY  IN  EDUCATION  deals  with  the  prob- 
lems confronting  the  individual  teacher  in  the  successful  ad- 
ministration of  his  school,  and  also  the  larger  problems  of  the 
school  as  a  part  of  the  institutional  life  and  growth  of  modern 
society.  It  discusses  the  problems  of  the  administration  of 
school  systems  and  such  matters  as  taxation,  boards  of 
education,  courses  of  study,  and  the  distinctive  work  of 
the  different  schools.  The  latest  movements  in  the  econom- 
ical correlation  of  the  home,  libraries,  museums,  and  art 
galleries  with  the  school  are  taken  up  at  some  length. 

AMERICAN     BOOK     COMPANY 

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